Sweet Hostage
by Willow2883
Summary: It's the day of Bella and Edward's wedding. Jacob comes to say goodbye. But Bella has a request of him. Two things, really. No questions asked.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: I started this last week. It is a WIP and I have only a vague idea where I'm going with it. But I had to get this first chapter out before tomorrow. Before IT premieres here in the U.S. and tries to crush our dreams of how it __**should**__ have ended. Maybe like this: _

**Chapter One**

_Just keep moving_.

If she forced her legs to keep propelling her forward, she couldn't feel her knees knocking together underneath the opulent white gown.

Now that death was imminent, her body's survival instincts kept shooting huge doses of adrenaline through her tiny form, causing her to tremble and shake and her heart to race.

"What's the matter, love?"

"It's excitement," she lied to her new husband, with the biggest forced smile she could manage. Concern was etched across his handsome features. Problem was, she was a lousy liar.

Half of the people in the large reception hall were capable of hearing her accelerated pulse rate. For all she knew, they could smell her fear as well. She swore she could see them exchanging knowing glances as she swept past them. Was that a smirk on Tanya Denali's face? Or was Bella imagining things in her panicked state?

This was surreal. All these people who meant so much to her, all gathered in one room. Her father and her mother, both on their best behavior, were putting up a united front for her special day. They even sat side by side, at the parent's table. Her stepfather, Phil, who sat on her mother's opposite side, smiled happily at Bella, grateful that she'd found happiness after generously leaving her mother's home so he and his new wife could start their new life without a teenager in the way.

Her classmates were having the time of their lives; sneaking champagne, dancing and getting rowdy at their own private table close to the wedding party.

And then there was the group who clung to the shadows on the windowless side of the room, She would be joining their circle very soon. The pale, beautiful ones with venom coursing through their veins, who no longer required oxygen to fill their lungs, no blood to pump their deceased hearts as they no longer had a pulse.

_They're beautiful_, she told herself, trying to stop her trembling.

_They're dead_, a voice inside her whispered.

The words echoed in her brain as Edward approached her with a radiant smile. "I have something that will cheer you up." He kissed Bella's forehead, taking her arm and twirling her in a dance spin toward the exit doors.

"Edward, what are you doing?"

"A surprise wedding gift," he grinned. He waltzed her onto the darkened lawn and toward the trees. What in the world?

Suddenly he stopped, and spoke into the blackness. "Thank you. This is very… kind of you."

A familiar husky voice answered back. "Kind is my middle name."

Her trembling knees buckled and Edward caught her, keeping her upright as he passed her over to a set of strong coppery hands.

She lost focus for a moment in her light-headedness. Edward excused himself and the next thing she knew, she was clinging to Jacob. He held her tight against him, partly because he was so happy to see her and partly because he was afraid she would fall to the ground if he loosened his hold.

She felt clammy to him, and her heart was hammering. There had been a panicked edge to her eyes just before he'd grabbed her. This was not how he'd expected to find her. She was radiant, yes. Even more beautiful than he'd remembered. More beautiful than he'd ever seen her, in fact. But something wasn't right.

"You okay, Bells?"

When she didn't answer, he took the liberty of pulling her even tighter. They were supposed to be dancing, so he swayed her gently, moving his weight from one foot to the other.

She was cold, her hands like lumps of ice against the back of his neck. Maybe that's why she was shivering.

He lowered his cheek against the top of her head, her hair tickling his nose. He was afraid to move, afraid to speak. This moment would be over much too soon, and he knew this was the last time he would ever see her. _This way_. His Bells. Soft. Flushed. Clumsy. Alive.

He needed to say something. Anything to mark the moment, and hope she'd remember it once her life was stamped out and the supernatural jumpstarted her corpse, making her one of _them_.

"You'd think I'd be used to telling you goodbye," he said softly. "This is – "

"Jacob," she interrupted. She pulled back, keeping her gaze level to his chest, avoiding his eyes. "Would you do something for me? No questions asked."

He studied her, unsure. She was so serious. She'd seemed agitated from the moment Edward had danced her outside.

He nodded. "Sure."

She looked over his shoulder into the distance for a moment, before returning her gaze to his chest. "Two things, really," she murmured.

He watched her take a deep breath, and she finally raised her eyes to meet his. "Will you do two things for me? Please? Without asking me any questions?"

He paused. For some reason, her request combined with the look on her face made him nervous.

"Sure," he smiled, trying to lighten the mood. "I mean, it's not like you're gonna, make me go hug it out with _him_, are you?" He nodded his head in Edward's direction.

She didn't crack a smile. The determination in her eyes worried him. But this was Bella, and he could see this was something serious. Something important to her.

"I'll do it for you."

He felt her muscles relax and lose some of their rigidness. He was happy that he'd apparently given her the answer she needed from him.

He made a slow half-circle as he danced her awkwardly in his arms. He wanted to keep his eyes trained on any bloodsuckers should they come out from the shadows surrounding the reception hall. He didn't care how much Bella, and even his wolf-brother, Seth, trusted them. They were killers. It was their nature.

What could she possibly be requesting of him, anyway? She probably wanted him to keep an eye on Charlie for her. Of course he would – he'd planned to do that already. Or she probably wanted him to promise to be nice to the Cullens today or something. But hell, he'd already decided he was going to play nice.

His grip tightened around her tiny waist and he pulled back to meet her eyes.

"What do you need me to do, Bells?"

Her answer almost sent him reeling over backwards.

She made a choking sound. "Get me the hell out of here. Now."

His eyes widened in surprise, but he held it together.

"Okay," he told her calmly. Hell yeah, he'd be happy to get her out of there. He'd wanted to do that from the very beginning.

"What's the other thing?"

She flushed and blinked, looking down.

"Later," she told him. "Just get me far away from here right now."

He looked at her face again to see if she was kidding. She wasn't holding back a grin, there was no twinkle in her eye underneath her serious expression. All he could see was grim determination.

He stepped back. "Let's go."

XXXXXX


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Bella looked over Jacob's shoulder, squinting as she scanned the parking lot in the distance.

"How did you get here?"

"I took the Rabbit. What do you think? I ran through the woods with my only good pair of pants and shirt, rubber-banded around my ankle?" He smiled at her and then grew serious. "It's parked in the lot."

He looked around, scanning all sides of the huge fancy hall. He couldn't see, smell or hear anyone outside, but he could see two of his brothers just behind the foliage of the trees about 200 yards from the hall exit doors.

"Stay here." He ran over to dense brush and the two wolves took a few hesitant steps toward the clearing. Bella watched Jacob bend down toward the huge wolves, face-level, with his hands gesturing madly. She supposed he was telling them of her crazy escape plan.

He ran back to her and pulled her close as if they were resuming their dance. He spoke quickly in her ear as he maneuvered them toward the wolves.

"I'm going to lead you over toward Sam and Paul, then I'm going to run like hell and get my car and pull it around here. Be ready to move fast, Bells. I don't know how much time we have before someone will come looking for us."

He kissed her forehead before walking swiftly toward the parking lot. She ducked under a thick pine-needled limb, peering into the woods. As she focused, two pairs of eyes stared at her through the darkness.

She was embarrassed. All the drama she'd caused, insisting on having what she wanted, no matter the fall-out and its consequences on everyone around her. Now she'd gotten exactly what she wanted and here she was about to cause even more drama as she tried to slip away. She was leaving others to answer the questions that she should have to be facing herself. She really was a coward, and she knew it. She could barely bring herself to meet their glaring stares.

"I'm sorry," she finally whispered, just as the Rabbit swooped smoothly around the curved drive and halted abruptly beside her.

The passenger door flew open. "Get in!"

She tore her gaze from the wolves, gathering up her long gown, ready to duck quickly into the car.

She knelt down, about to fling herself into the passenger seat, when a body blocked her way. It appeared so suddenly, Bella had never seen it coming. The wolves growled and took a few steps closer.

The figure was tall, blonde, golden-eyed and wearing a beautiful caramel-hued gown that matched her eyes and off-set the strawberry highlights in her hair. Tanya Denali.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Bella could hear a growling sound coming from the car. She could see Jacob's arm reaching across the seat toward Tanya's back and it was shaking violently. He was going to phase right in the driver's seat.

"No! Jacob, I can handle this!"

Tanya leaned down and glanced at Jacob, a humorous glint in her eye, then back at Bella.

"Yes! Down, Jacob, down. Heel. Bella can handle this." She crossed her arms across her chest, wearing a small lopsided grin. "And I can't wait to hear it."

There was complete silence as all eyes turned to Bella. Before she could compose herself and form a reply, Tanya spoke again.

"I warned Edward. Stay with your own kind, I told him. But he insisted that you were different. You _wanted_ to be one of us." She shook her head and frowned. "No one _wants_ to be one of us," she said quietly. "I think Edward thought you would make him different. Bring back his humanity somehow. Make him better than the rest of us. He'd never admit to it of course, but Edward has always felt superior to the rest of us. As if he was too good for us."

Tanya stared into the trees, lost in her own thoughts for a moment. She slid her gaze back toward Bella with a twisted smile. "Did he tell you about us?"

"There wasn't much to tell," Bella whispered, lifting her chin slightly. "But I know that you… were attracted to him. And he didn't want you."

Tanya quirked her eyebrow and laughed. "Is that what he told you?"

Bella didn't know what Tanya's game was or what she was implying. "Look, Tanya. I don't know what you're saying was between Edward and you before I met him – "

"Before you met him? Oh, Bella, Edward and I have been very, very close since before you were even born. Don't let him kid you. Our bond is very deep and goes way, way back."

"Then you must be very important to him," Bella conceded. "He's going to need a friend." She took a step closer to Tanya. "I love Edward. But I don't want… this." She gestured to her fancy gown and then to Tanya herself. The vampire's eyes narrowed into slits at the implication. "But he's going to need someone to take care of him. It's what you wanted after all, isn't it?"

Tanya seemed to think it over, her eyes boring into Bella's.

Then she gracefully and slowly slid away from the car door, leaving it open for Bella to enter.

Once Bella situated herself into the passenger seat, Tanya slammed the door closed. "Go! Hurry!"

Jacob hit the gas and they wound back around the drive and toward the lot, which led to the street.

"That was close," Jacob breathed.

Bella leaned her head back against the head-rest and shut her eyes. Jacob reached over and took her hand. It was cold as ice. She felt like one of them already.

He rubbed the frown between his eyebrows away. That had been too close. What if he hadn't made it to the reception? What if he'd missed her and Edward had already swept her away toward their honeymoon by the time he'd made it here? Bella would have been a goner. He knew there was no way she would have pulled this stunt on her own. A shudder went through him and he gripped the steering wheel to calm himself down.

Jacob looked in the rear-view mirror. No one was following them. Yet. He took the on-ramp onto the highway and stepped on the accelerator again.

"Where am I going?"

"I don't know," she answered, her eyes still shut. "I don't care. It's probably best if I don't know. If we get separated and Alice can 'see' me – I don't want to make it too easy for her. She'll have to figure out where I am on her own."

"Well then it's best if I don't phase either."

She turned her head to him, opening her eyes curiously.

"You know Edward will be questioning Sam and the rest of them."

She nodded her head and laid her head back, closing her eyes again.

"That's right, honey, just shut your eyes. Go to sleep. I've got it from here." He gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

"Thanks Jacob," she whispered.

**XXXXXXX**

_A/N: First, I just want to say thank you for the overwhelming response to the first chapter of Sweet Hostage. I am so flattered and blown-away. I hope the rest of the story lives up to your expectations. _

_I'm sure some of you have seen the movie. I was at the midnight showing and have to say the movie was better than the book. But then I'll take my Jacob Black fix any way I can get it – even if I had to cover my eyes during the dreaded imprinting scene. _

_The best part was the Jacob and Bella dance at the wedding, where this story picks up from. For approximately 3 brief minutes I remembered exactly why I love Jacob Black. Taylor nailed it. _


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Jacob glanced over at Bella. Her head was at a weird angle against the headrest and her mouth was slightly open. She looked tiny with the white lace billowing out around her and taking up most of the passenger seat. She'd been asleep within 15 minutes.

He was so happy to get out of there.

With her.

At his side.

At _**her**_ request.

Maybe these past few months of anguish hadn't been for nothing.

About 2 hours later, as he drove through the night without the faintest idea of where they were going, he realized he had no money. Unless Bella had stashed a wad of bills in her décolletage or a garter tucked underneath her dress, he knew she had none as well. His eyes slid to where her thighs would be underneath all that fabric and wondered if there was a garter underneath there. A white garter with maybe a little blue bow.

_Knock it off and focus, Black. Geez_. He needed to keep his eyes on the road and his mind on a plan. He had his driver's license, but you had to be 18 to rent a room in a hotel. Bella didn't have a purse with her, so he was pretty sure she had no ID on her.

He wished now he'd followed through on that fake ID he'd been all set to buy – just before he'd started phasing. Being a werewolf had really put a dent on his social life. He'd backed out at the last minute when pressed for the money by his juvenile delinquent classmate, Joaquin, who sold fake ID's, ran illegal bets and organized underground poker games on weekends. Was probably just as well.

How were they going to get a room with no money and neither of them could prove they were over 18? Jacob sighed. He knew the answer, but he didn't like it.

He'd give them another hour and he'd start looking for a place to spend the night. That would put 4 hours distance between them and Forks. He had no doubt Edward would come looking for her, but with him here to incapacitate the psychic leeches powers, good luck with that.

It was midnight before he found a dimly lit motel on a quiet, dark road. He turned the Rabbit's lights off and pulled in all the way around in the back. He parked at the very end of the dirt lot, beside some brush. There were four rooms with no lights on and no cars parked in front of them.

He left Bella still sleeping in the car and went to the room on the end, farthest from the road. His feet made no sound as he crept to the door and stood silently outside it, listening.

Bingo! There were no lights, no footsteps, no faint television static, no sound of breathing coming from inside. It had almost been too easy.

He looked both ways before taking the doorknob in his hand and with a quick flick of his wrist, he busted it free from the door, breaking it completely off. He pushed the door open partway and went back for Bella.

"Where are we?" She asked hoarsely as she stirred.

"I'm not sure exactly," he whispered. "But go back to sleep, we're going to spend the night here."

He pushed the door shut quietly with his foot as he carried her into the room. He could see in the dark easily and laid her gently onto the king-sized bed at the opposite end of the room.

"Turn the light on, please Jacob. I need to use the restroom."

"Can't Bells. We can't draw attention to ourselves, I had to break in. Come here, I'll help you to the bathroom. Don't turn the light on till you shut the door though. We don't want anyone to see a light on in here."

She was too tired to ask questions, so she did as he told her to once he guided her to the bathroom and she'd shut the door. He went back to the window and drew the heavy curtains closed.

While Bella was occupied, Jake tried to adjust the doorknob so it at least wasn't dangling and obvious on the outside of the door. If he left it, it would just scream "break-in" to the maids in the morning. Although from the musty smell of the room, he doubted the maids were too fastidious. Just to be safe, he put a Do Not Disturb sign on the knob, once he got it back in the hole and semi-not obvious.

There was a stuffed green fabric chair by the window and he settled uncomfortably onto that. He'd let her have the bed to herself.

He was exhausted. He knew Sam would want some details of what was going on aside from the brief explanation Jacob had given him at the reception before running off. But he not only was too tired, he really did want Sam and the others to know as little as possible once the bloodsuckers started interrogating them.

"Jacob?" He heard her whisper timidly before he heard a loud thump as she tripped over her dress, trying to find her way back to the bed in the dark.

He was relieved when he heard her giggle from the floor as he helped her up.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine. I should always wear this; it's as good as football padding."

He chuckled as he settled her back down on the bed and went back to the chair.

"Jake?"

"Yeah?"

"I really should telephone my dad at least. Charlie must be worried sick."

"One slight problem. Neither of us has a phone."

"There should be a phone here in the room. I'm not allowed to turn on the lights," she said sarcastically. "So I haven't actually **seen** it, but there's always a phone in a motel room, right?"

"Yeah, there's one there by the bed. But problem is honey, we broke in. If they trace the phone call back to your dad, we could get in big trouble for breaking and entering. Not too cool, especially when the person you're calling is the Chief of Police."

"Um, Jake? Did you say **we** broke in? You got a mouse in your pocket? Cos I don't remember committing any criminal acts."

"Ha-ha."

Bella sighed. It was a long, choked, sad sigh and it broke Jake's heart.

"You want to call your dad, Bella?"

"Mm-hmm," she sniffed.

"Alright, honey. Don't worry; have you forgotten who you're with? The next best thing in tele-communications: telephone, telegram or tell-a-werewolf. I'll phase in the morning and have Sam or one of the guys tell Billy to tell Charlie you're with me and you're okay."

"Thanks Jacob."

They were both quiet and Jacob was counting the number of chirps a cricket was making outside; he knew if you counted them and divided them by something or other, you could tell what the temperature was outside. He was so uncomfortable on the hard, knotty chair, he couldn't relax.

"Why are you way over there on that chair, Jake?"

"You can have the bed, Bells." He tried bending one of his legs up under him, but that just cut off vital circulation in his thigh.

"Jacob. Don't be silly. This bed is huge. You can sleep on the other side."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," she said with certainty. "Besides, it's cold. I need my space heater."

Jacob got up from the chair as trepidation swept through him. She had married another man today and he'd gone to tell her goodbye, and even after they'd taken off like two lunatics – it had still just been Jake and Bells. It had been easy between them. It had felt natural.

Now he didn't know how to act. This _**was**_ Bella's wedding night. There were certain things you did on your wedding night. Certain things you expected. And while Jacob would be happy to comply, he was _**not**_ her husband.

Was she disappointed that her wedding night would be unconsummated? It had been a given, considering who she was marrying. It's not like she could… do **it** with a leech.

Didn't she _want_ her wedding night to be consummated?

Bella had seemed to have a plan. A plan that included Jacob. Did she have a plan that included him concerning her wedding night?

He shifted, bringing his knees up to ease the tightness that was stirring in his groin. He suddenly felt like a girl on prom night. Was Bella expecting something from him? He was cool with that – but he didn't know how to act now. Did she want him to make a move?

He nervously walked to the edge of the bed. Her white stilettos peeked out from under the bottom of her dress. _Ouch_. No wonder she'd fallen down.

"Are you gonna sleep with these on?" He asked her, removing them before she had time to answer. He slipped them off and put them on the floor beside the bed.

"Thanks Jake," she yawned.

He slipped off his own shoes and climbed slowly onto the opposite side of the bed. He laid there for a moment, wondering if he should slide closer, maybe offer to comfort her? She _had_ had a rough day.

She reached back and placed her little hand in his. He smiled. He didn't care how much they'd fucked things up today. He was just happy to have his Bells back.

"Bella?" He asked, remembering something. "What was the other thing you wanted me to do?"

He heard her deep steady breathing. She'd already fallen back to sleep.

**XXXXXXXXX**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Bella opened her eyes in the darkened room the next morning and stared until her eyes began to adjust. The drapes were pulled shut, so she had no idea what time of day or night it was. Jacob's form sitting at the side of the bed began to take shape in the gloom. She watched silently as he counted the dollar bills in his hand and then stared at the money he held.

She took a breath and he turned his head toward her.

"Hey. You're awake."

She nodded. "What time is it?" Just as she said it, she noticed the lit digital display clock on the nightstand. Seven-thirty am.

"How much do you have?" she asked him quietly.

He fanned the bills in his hand out so she could see. "Eighteen dollars," he sighed. "And the Rabbit is almost on empty."

She got up from the bed and caught sight of her bride-attired reflection in the dresser mirror. He saw her face crumple and she sat abruptly back down on the bed.

"I'm so sorry Jacob." She covered her face as the tears began.

"Don't be sorry, Bella. Don't be sorry. Be glad." He moved over so he was seated beside her and pulled her against him. "Thank god I made it there in time. I wasn't sure I would. Yesterday morning something just snapped and I started running for home. Maybe I knew you needed me," he murmured, kissing the top of her head.

"How do you know me so well, Jacob?" she murmured against his chest.

"You know why." He stroked her back. "In the meantime, I don't know how we're going to eat. You don't happen to have any money, do you?"

She sniffed and shook her head.

"Well, I don't know how much more time we have in this room. They're going to see we broke in soon, so we really need to get the hell out of here before they find us."

He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and cleared his throat before he asked her. "Do you have a plan Bella? I mean, do you know what you want to do?"

Bella's eyes shifted and she avoided the question. "I'm hungry. Do you think we can at least afford a donut or a bagel from the grocery store or something?"

He really wanted to talk this out, but he didn't want to press her. Decisions needed to be made and soon. God only knew what everyone was thinking back home. As far as they knew, Bella just up and disappeared. The last person to see Bella was Edward. When he left her with Jacob. No bueno.

They weren't going to be able to stall the inevitable for long. Not with no money, no ID's and Bella in a wedding dress. Cos that wouldn't draw any attention. Right.

Bella sat in the dark and tried not to think as she waited for Jacob as he showered. When it was her turn, she turned the water on to almost scalding and focused on the torrent pouring down on her. She'd already wasted a whole morning avoiding the repercussions of her actions the day before. But things like that catch up with you and you have to pay the piper eventually.

XXXXXXXXX

For $3 they were able to get a bag of bagels and a small carton of orange juice that they shared. Bella gave Jacob a brief lesson in bargain shopping. They really wanted donuts, but 6 pre-packaged bagels were on sale and cost less than 2 donuts. So bagels it was.

This little shopping spree took quite a bit of time since Bella couldn't actually go into the store herself. So Jacob had to go back and forth a few times, reporting prices and choices, while Bella made the final decisions.

No one had noticed them leave the motel when they snuck off. The day was overcast, but warm and muggy, so Jacob turned off the main road and found a secluded spot off a dirt road. They climbed up on the hood of the Rabbit and ate their bagels as the sun fought its way through the dark clouds.

They were quiet as they both sat back against the windshield and shut their eyes. Jacob knew forcing Bella to have a conversation when she wasn't ready to talk, would just cause her to clam up. So he sat back and waited. When she was ready, she would give him some answers.

He knew her so well.

"I didn't plan it."

It came out of nowhere and Jacob finally relaxed, letting her get it all out. She waited a few moments before she went on.

"I was fine. I thought I was ready. I thought I could do it. I felt strong. But then… "

He reached for her hand at the same moment she reached for his. She took a moment to compose herself.

"But then the music started and my dad was there with me, holding my arm so I wouldn't fall, leading me down the aisle. I saw all the people in their seats, all the familiar faces. And as we got halfway down the aisle, I saw your dad. He was sitting with Emily and her cousin, with little Claire on her lap. She had her thumb in her mouth and she was twirling her hair around her chubby little finger. And she looked up at me with those dark eyes, and she made me remember – " Bella buried her face in her hands as the tears came.

Jacob's arm around her shoulder felt warm and safe. Finally, her sobs turned to sniffles interspersed with a few hiccups.

"What did she make you remember, Bells?"

She leaned her head on his shoulder.

"I remembered the vision, on the mountaintop. Remember, I told you? I saw it Jacob. Two little dark-haired children. And I wanted it." A sob came from her chest. She stared up at the sky. "Charlie had my arm, and I thought I was gonna lose it for a split second. So I looked up at the altar," she turned and looked into his eyes. "And I saw you. It was you, waiting for me there."

He stared at her, stunned. "You saw me?"

She nodded. "I'm crazy, aren't I? I mean, hearing Edward's voice in my head after he left last year, then having visions in the middle of a kiss, and then "seeing" you waiting for me at the altar. I mean, I must be certifiable."

"Hey, the vision I understand. That was one hell of a kiss."

She smiled for the first time that day. "Yes, it was."

They both leaned back against the windshield. "So what do you want to do Bells? We can't go too many places with you looking like Madonna in Runaway Bride."

"Julia Roberts," she murmured.

"Whatever. You get the point." He sat up and looked her square in the face. "It's not too late, Bells. I can take you back there right now and you know as well as I do that Edward would take you back. You can still go be Mrs. Bloodsucker, if that's what you want."

"You would do that? After all I put you through, you would take me back there to him?"

He looked down at their joined hands and then back at her eyes. "If that's what you wanted," he said softly. "I would bring you back."

Bella turned away, studying the clouds intently. "I knew when I let him go, it had to be completely. And I wasn't ready or able to do that. I thought it was him that I couldn't live without. Until yesterday. When I saw you again. It's impossible to live without the air, without the sun. At least for me it is," she smiled ruefully. "When Edward brought me outside and I heard your voice as you came through the trees. Right then, at that exact moment – I knew. I thought it was him I couldn't live without. But I was wrong."

Jacob slid off the hood. "Well let's go, then. I'll help you tell them."

He saw the look of hesitation on her face and recognized her old habit of hugging her chest when she was lost.

"Bella, people are worried about you. We need to let everyone know you're alright." His eyes darkened as his brows knit tightly. "You don't think anyone would try to hurt you, do you?"

She knew who he was talking about. "No," she shook her head. "No one will hurt me. I'm not afraid of that." She winced. "I just feel bad."

"I know, honey. But I'll be there with you. You won't be alone."

Her eyes darted as she thought. "One more night? Just give me one more night. I promise, tomorrow I'll be ready. Okay?"

He nodded reluctantly. "If that's what you need. I'll at least check in with Sam in a bit, and make sure the message that you're okay gets back to Charlie."

He climbed back on the hood and split a bagel in two, handing Bella the other half. If anyone had driven by, they would assume they were a bride and groom taking a break on their way to their honeymoon. But the road was quiet as it stretched its way out to the horizon.

**XXXXXXXXXX**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

"Do you think that blonde vamp said anything to Edward?"

They were walking along the creek bed not far from where they'd parked the car. Bella had her dress hiked up, her shoes in her hand as she cooled her feet in the frigid water. Jacob was stalling his 'chat' with Sam. This was the first time in months that he had Bella all to himself and he wanted to savor it before he had to discuss **him** this afternoon.

"Tanya?" She crinkled her nose. "I don't know."

"Although Mr. Annoying doesn't need to have a conversation with anyone. He just busts right inside your thoughts and pulls them out of your head." He kicked a large rock, hard, with his foot.

"True."

"Or there's always the psychic leech. She probably saw it all."

"No," Bella shook her head resolutely. "I didn't plan it. I didn't even think you would be there, so there's no way Alice saw it. You were there when I made the decision, so you blocked the whole thing."

"Well if the blonde leech keeps her mouth shu –"

"Tanya," Bella interjected, irritated.

"Tanya," Jake reiterated, rolling his eyes. "If _Tanya_ doesn't say anything to Edward, for all he knows, I could have thrown you over my shoulder and run off with you. Kidnapped you!" Jacob shook his head and whistled low. "This could get very ugly."

Bella picked up a rock from the water and studied it as she muttered to herself. "I should have just went through with the whole thing. I'd probably be dead now anyway after our wedding night."

"Don't say that! You did the right thing. Wait – what? What do you mean you'd probably be dead now? Was he going to change you on your wedding night?"

"No. Not till after the honeymoon."

She saw his hands clench and his breath tightened. "Well then, what were you… You weren't going to.. ? He can't – you can't, I mean, you're not saying what I think you're saying, are you? Please tell me you weren't going to sleep with him!"

She studied the rock and avoided his eyes, before throwing it into the water. "We were going to try," she said softly.

"Oh, fuck that! He'd kill you Bella! Are you crazy?"

She raised her hand. "Certifiable, remember?"

He shook his head and turned away. She saw his body shaking slightly and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Hey, I didn't, did I?"

"I can't believe you were even thinking it."

She took a deep breath. "What if he _had_ killed me? I mean," her cheeks reddened. "What if he lost control?"

"Death by fucking," Jacob choked. She surprised him when she let out a shocked giggle. He relaxed and chuckled himself. "I guess there are worse ways to go."

Her head swiveled toward him quickly. "No there aren't. How embarrassing would that be? What would they tell Charlie?"

Jacob intoned in a nerdy voice. "We're sorry to inform you Mr. Swan, that there was a little _**accident**_on Bella's wedding night."

Bella's hand flew to her mouth as she tried to stifle their shared laughter.

"It's not funny, Jacob!" She smacked his arm.

He placed his thumb by his ear and his pinky near his mouth, as if he were speaking on the phone. "We'll send you what's left of your daughter's vagina as soon as possible'."

"Ja-cob!" She tossed a small rock at him and tried to hold a glare, but her mouth kept spreading into a grin.

"I'm sorry, Bells!" He smiled as he caught the rock in his hand.

"Mmm-hmmm."

The smile disappeared from his face in a flash and he threw the rock down.

"What's the matter?" she frowned.

He shook his head. "I just can't believe… I mean, you know what they're capable of Bella. You saw what they did to me. One tight squeeze, and half my body, broken like a rag doll. How could you even think of… ?"

She reached out and took his arm, trying to reassure him with her eyes. "Maybe I wouldn't have gone through with it. Maybe I would have chickened out."

"No, you wouldn't have." He pulled his arm away. "I've seen the way you are with him. 'Yes Edward, okay Edward, anything you want Edward'. It's pathetic!"

He turned his back to her, walking away in frustration. He got a few yards away when she called after him.

"Jacob Black! Come back here!"

He stopped, but kept his back to her.

"Please don't be mad at me. I don't think I could stand it."

"Sure, sure," he replied tersely as he continued walking in the opposite direction without so much as a glance back. "I'm gonna go talk to Sam now."

She watched him pull his shirt off after unbuttoning it as he headed for the trees. He tossed it into the dry grass and then he disappeared behind a cedar.

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

She scrambled from her seat on the hood of the Rabbit as he came back. He was wearing just his slacks as he scooped down to retrieve his shirt from the ground. He didn't look happy.

She held her breath as he joined her standing next to the car.

"What did he say?" she asked tightly.

He looked her in the eye. "Shit hit the fan after we left."

"What! What happened?"

"I guess the blonde leech – Terri? Tracy?"

"Tanya!"

"Yeah, Tanya. I guess she didn't say anything to Edward right away. She must have kept her distance so he couldn't read her thoughts. About 10 minutes after we took off, Sam said Edward came outside to see what was taking us so long. He said he could tell Edward was starting to panic, cos he started whipping around the lawn area faster than a whirling dervish, and if anyone had seen him... "

He took a deep breath. "Anyway. Edward smelled Sam and Paul in the trees there and rushed over to ask them if they knew where we were. But before he got close enough to speak – he saw Sam's thoughts. He saw the Rabbit careening out of the parking lot with you and me in it."

"Oh no."

"Yeah, 'oh no'. He went for Sam so fast, him and Paul almost had to take him down. They didn't know **what** he was going to do, coming at them like that."

"They didn't fight?" Bella grabbed Jake's arm in anguish.

"No. But when Edward started spouting 20 questions at them, all they knew was that we had left together." Jacob made a wry face. "Of course your leech's first words were 'the dog abducted her!'. And while Sam and Paul didn't know much, they _were _able to tell him you left of your own free will. But I'm sure he thinks I coerced you somehow."

"What exactly did you tell Sam and Paul yesterday?"

"Just that we were getting out of there."

"And? What else?"

"That's it. You kinda took me by surprise there, Bella. You didn't exactly tell me anything. I didn't know where we were going, or even **why**. No questions asked. Remember?"

She looked down, unable to meet his eyes. "Then what?" she whispered.

"Edward got all up in Sam's face and said he and the rest of his family were going to La Push and hunt us down – treaty be damned. Stupid Paul – you know he can't control his temper – he started to go for Edward, but Sam phased to calm things down a little, and told Edward the pack would go to La Push and look for us and promised to report back to Edward if we were there."

"And Edward agreed to that?"

"No. Not at first. Not till Sam promised to meet with Edward face to face so he could rifle through Sam's head to see if he was lying. _Then_ he agreed to it. Sam met with him this morning."

"How is he? How did he handle it?"

"Not good, Bella. He's upset. Do you blame him?"

Bella swallowed. "What about Charlie?"

Jacob shook his head and chuckled. "Sam said my dad told him Charlie went back to the house with him and practically danced a jig." He smiled dryly. "My dad will give him the message that you're alright this afternoon. Charlie knows you're with me though; so he's not too worried, so relax."

Bella nodded absently, trying to take it all in.

Jacob hopped up on the hood of the Rabbit. "So what's on the agenda tonight? You want me to commit a little more breaking and entering?" He pulled his shirt back on, not bothering to button it. "You'll come and visit me in prison when they lock me up, right? Make me some muffins with a skeleton key baked inside?"

Bella couldn't quite match his easy manner. She knew Edward must be going crazy with hurt and jealousy.

"It's alright. They won't lock you up for _too_ long," she managed to quip. "I've got connections."

"Sure, sure," he told her, unable to contain his happiness at being with her.

Even if her husband did want to rip his head off.

**XXXXXXXXXXX**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Bella jumped in surprise as Jacob patted her on the rear end a few times with a laugh.

"Hey! What was that for?" she glared at him as she started to get back into the car.

Jacob held up his hands. "I'm not getting fresh! The back of your dress is all dirty. I guess the Rabbit needs a wash. She's just been sitting in the garage, untouched, since I left."

"Aww," Bella teased him. "I bet she missed you."

Jacob rolled his eyes at her as she tried to get a look at the back of her dress. She brushed her hands blindly behind her, trying to wipe some of the dust away.

"All I really want to do is get this dress off me," she told him.

Her eyes caught his and she swallowed hard. She didn't have to possess Edward's mind-reading ability to see the thought that went through Jacob's head at her comment. It was blatantly written across his face. As quickly as it appeared, he wiped it away. But it had been long enough for her to decipher it. He'd like to get the dress off of her as well.

She felt her cheeks turn pink as they shared an uncomfortable stare of silence.

Wow. She shuddered as a chill went down her spine. Now she knew what Edward meant when he used to say Jacob's thoughts were so vivid and loud.

She tore her eyes away and stuffed herself back into the passenger seat.

He broke the uncomfortable silence. "So we're about 10 miles past Seattle. Do you want to backtrack and find a place to stay there tonight?"

"I guess," she said warily. "I mean, are you okay with that? I don't want you to do anything that you don't feel comfortable with, Jake." She looked around the small car. "We could," she frowned as she took in the tiny size of the vehicle. "We could sleep in the Rabbit tonight."

He made a face. "We could. I mean, _you_ could. If you don't feel right about breaking in somewhere again, I could just phase and sleep outside here. You could have the backseat. But I don't know how comfortable that would be for you. There's no way I would fit back there."

The unpleasant look on her face at the thought of sleeping in the backseat of the Rabbit said it all.

"It's alright, Bells. I've got a plan. I think I know how we can get some food later, and where we should stay tonight. Kind of."

"Okay."

"We might as well stick around here for a while. It's only noon now. There aren't too many places you can hang around in Seattle dressed like that."

They took their 1 remaining bagel with them as they headed back toward the creek.

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

The August sun was warm. They'd both kicked off their shoes and laid back on the ground. Bella had blades of grass in her hair. She looked adorable, so Jacob didn't tell her.

"How old is he?"

"How old is who?" she asked him idly.

"Him. Edward. How old _**is**_ he?"

She took a deep breath. "He's 108."

Jacob whistled softly. "Damn. I thought Billy was old. Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead," she sighed.

"Why is he hanging around a high school? That's kinda gross. "

"They go to high school to further their education, Jacob."

"If he's all into education, why not be a_**teacher**_at a high school? Or, at least go to college. People of all ages go to college."

"He looks too young to be a teacher."

"He doesn't sleep. Why doesn't he take all that wasted time and learn how to camouflage himself, so he could get a job? Do something productive."

"I don't know."

He could tell she was getting irritated, so he dropped the subject. But it was still creepy to him. What was a 108 year old man doing trolling the halls of a high school? It's not even like they did it for socialization. Was Alice really a cheerleader? Did Jasper work on the school paper? Did Edward play on the Forks High football team? Jacob didn't think so.

In fact, wasn't it dangerous? So they didn't drink human blood anymore. But didn't that brother of Edward's, the one who tried to attack Bella on her birthday, didn't he still have a hard time sticking to a diet of just animal blood? Real smart. Stick the bloodthirsty leech in a school full of kids every day.

Bella sighed loudly and then went quiet again.

"What's the matter Bella?"

"Do you know what the grounds are for an annulment in the state of Washington?"

"Well, last time I tried to pass the bar, I failed. And I think it was the annulment question that made me flunk. How should I know?"

"Well, I'm just laying here wondering if there's anything that makes the marriage invalid?"

"Excuse me, Your Honor, my husband is dead, does that count? Yes, that's right, he has no pulse. Can I please get a divorce now?"

He opened his eyes to see Bella glaring at him again.

"You are so _**not**_ funny, Jacob."

"I'm sorry, Bells. I'm just trying to make you laugh. And it is true. I'm sure marrying a corpse would make the marriage invalid in any state."

"Just be quiet, Jacob."

"Okay." Before shutting his eyes again, he noticed that where her dress dipped down the front of her chest, she was turning pink from the sun. "Uh, Bella?"

"I said be quiet, Jacob."

"But Bells, your uh, your – " he waggled his finger over his own chest area to indicate where he wanted her to look, but she ignored him.

"My what?"

He reached out and grazed his fingers in a sweeping motion across the expanse between her collarbones. She bounced up so quickly with a gasp, she almost smacked heads with him.

He pulled his hand away quickly and scooted back slightly. "You're starting to burn."

"Oh."

He could hear her heartbeat fluttering and now her cheeks were as pink as her chest. Her fingers were clutching the blades of grass tightly on either side of her.

"That's all," he mumbled as he tried not to stare at her chest now. He thought of running his tongue across that pink skin to ease the sting from the baking sun. Or maybe some baby kisses peppered gently would help stop the burn.

"Thanks." She rolled onto her stomach and placed her cheek against her arm.

Thank god. He didn't think he would be unable to stop the thoughts, or tear his gaze away from the slightly flushed expanse of skin.

His mouth watered and his tongue pressed against the back of his front teeth in anticipation. He rolled onto his stomach too, as his jeans began to tighten.

He prayed the room they found tonight had two beds.

**XXXXXXXXXXXX**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

"Hey!" Bella yelled as Jacob slammed on the brakes and the car screeched to a stop.

"Bells?" He smiled. "Do you see what I see?"

She looked up ahead. "Yeah. A house. So what?"

He gave her an exasperated look. "And what else?"

He watched her expression change as the light bulb went off over her head.

"Laundry!" she squealed.

The house stood alone as one of the few that dotted the back road. But this house had clothes hanging all around the front yard, pinned on a clothesline.

"It looks like mostly sheets and baby clothes," she said, disappointed.

"Except for there, on the end," he pointed. "There's a Seattle Seahawks sweatshirt, a pair of sweats _**and**_ a pair of jeans."

"That sweatshirt looks huge."

"Beggars can't be choosers, Bells. And now my conscience will be clear – I won't have to shoplift anything for you to wear later." He looked at her. "That was my original plan."

He pulled a little closer to the house before putting on the parking brake and turning to her. "Leave the car running, I'll be right back. I'm gonna go grab those three things and then we're gonna hightail it out of here. Fast. You ready?"

She nodded as he got out of the car and sprinted to the house. He never broke his stride as he hopped over the picket fence that encircled the small yard and began snatching the clothes off the line. He just had his hand on the jeans when a small blonde figure came around the back corner of the house.

"Mama!" They screeched. "Mama! There's a man in our yard!"

As Jacob hopped back over the fence, he heard a squeaky screen door open and a woman's voice yelling. "Hey! Hey! You come back here!"

"Shove these in the back and hang on!" he hollered as he threw the clothes across the seat at Bella and pulled the parking brake off. The tires squealed as he peeled off down the road.

He drove about a mile further, before he pulled over to the side of the road again. They were both bent over with laughter and trying to catch their breath.

"You were… awesome!" Bella told him, holding up her hand for a high five, once her laughter calmed down to giggles. "That was fun!"

"Yeah. Stick with me. I'm just a barrel of laughs," he chuckled, pleased with himself. He grinned. "That _was_ pretty funny."

He reached into the back seat and held up the Seattle Seahawks sweatshirt. You could have fit 3 people Bella's size into it. But like Jacob had said; they couldn't afford to be choosy. The jeans, at closer look, seemed to be a children's size, but the sweats looked like they would fit her.

"We're not too far from the freeway, so go ahead and put this stuff on now. I've been thinking, and I think we're better off heading toward the airport. I'm sure they have some big hotels there, and we'll blend in better. Plus, a bigger hotel means more floors with rooms to choose from, so we can scout around a little until we find an empty one in a quiet hallway. Okay?"

She nodded. She was glad one of them was thinking clearly. Only one thing had been going through her mind all afternoon: annulment.

"Okay," he opened the car door to leave, so he could give her some privacy while she changed out of her dress.

"Um, Jacob?" He stopped and turned to her questioningly. "I um, I can't undo all the buttons down the back. Alice and Rosalie had to button me in. Could you help me?"

A few seconds passed and Jacob took a breath, when he realized he'd been holding it. "Sure," he shrugged, trying to be casual. He didn't want to make her nervous, or make her think he would use the opportunity to ogle her.

"Thanks. Should I… I mean, do you want me to get out of the car, or… ?"

"No, no. Just turn in your seat, I can do it here."

She turned toward the passenger window, and his fingers suddenly felt stiff and numb. He flexed them a couple of times before he hesitantly reached for the top pearl button. He hadn't paid any attention before, but there must have been 100 tiny pearl buttons that ran up her back and held the dress together.

Her hair was still pulled up from yesterday, but there were loose tendrils falling down her back that had come undone. He brushed them aside, revealing a canvas of creamy, pale skin.

He hesitated.

_Just do it!_

He was over-thinking this – it was just buttons, it wasn't rocket science. His big hands fumbled with the delicate pearl, pushing it through the buttonhole.

Okay, one down. Only about 99 more to go.

He began gaining speed and agility as he went along. But then his fingers froze briefly when he hit mid-back and realized there was no bra, just bare, porcelain Bella.

He was thankful that he was the one with heightened senses and she was oblivious to his rocketing pulse rate. Plus the fact that with her back to him, she couldn't see the sweat that had broken out above his upper lip. He brushed it away quickly, and tried undoing the rest of her dress with his eyes closed. But that wasn't helpful at all. His fingers kept missing the buttons and swiping against the smooth silk of her skin. He gritted his teeth and re-opened his eyes, trying to hurry.

"I'm almost done," he mumbled. He was getting low. Where were her underwear?

_Dear god, please don't tell me she's not wearing panties. Please god_.

His fingers finally hit a strip of white lace across her lower back. But then the lace stopped and there was more skin. She wasn't wearing a – was it a white lace _thong_? He started to panic as the visual of Bella sliding out of her dress in just a white lace thong invaded every one of his senses. He began tearing at the buttons in a rush of panic. What was she trying to do to him?

There were still more buttons making their way down over her backside, but he stopped, afraid he was going to rip the delicate fabric if his shaking hands went on.

He needed to get the hell out of the suddenly claustrophobic car, before he burst through his pants and they'd have to find _**him**_ some clothes.

"I think you can get it off now. I'll give you some privacy." He turned quickly and bolted from the car. He didn't turn back as he practically ran for the sanctuary of the trees.

**XXXXXXXXX**

Jacob took one look at Bella standing beside the Rabbit as he came back to the car and tried to bite back the bark of laughter that erupted from him. She looked about 5 years old. The giant sweatshirt was so huge it swam on her and could have passed for a dress.

At least the blue sweatshirt matched the gray sweats. Only they weren't really sweats, they were more like leggings. Leggings that were so small and so short, they were skintight and the length came just mid-calf, not even covering her ankles.

"Don't. Say. A. Word." Her arms were crossed over her chest and her head was down in embarrassment.

He forced his face into a neutral expression. "You look fine, Bella. The jeans didn't fit?"

"No. They were too small. I couldn't even pull them up. I think they were for a little kid."

He studied her a minute. "Those heels, though. They're a little… fancy for that outfit."

Her white stilettos completed the picture of ridiculousness.

"Yeah, now I'll really blend."

"Don't worry. I can break off the heel. They won't look too bad if I can make them flat."

They both got back into the car.

"You were gone a long time," she told him. "What were you doing?"

"M – Meditating," he stuttered.

"Really?" she asked, surprised.

"Close enough," he chuckled, starting the car. "You don't want to know," he told her before she could ask. She bit her lip and didn't know whether to giggle or blush.

They drove in silence for the 25 minutes or so it took them before hitting downtown Seattle. Jacob followed the signs on the freeway toward the airport. Large hotels began popping up, and Jacob pulled the car into a gas station and put their last $15 into the Rabbit, before pulling into a hotel parking lot. Bella saw the sign: Hilton Seattle Airport and Conference Center.

It was starting to get dark outside as Jake slid into a parking space and put the car in park, turning off the engine.

"Ready to hunt down a room?"

She nodded nervously.

"Good. Cos I'm starving," Jacob told her.

She slipped her now-flat white shoes on and they crossed the parking lot toward the lobby.

"Just act like you belong here and follow me to the elevator," he whispered as they made their way through the lobby doors.

There were people at the front desk checking in and no one even so much as glanced at the two teenagers as they crossed the marble floor to the elevators. The metal doors slid open and they walked into the empty compartment.

"Pick a floor, any floor," he told her.

"Seven's lucky, right?" She pushed the button and crossed her fingers.

A bell dinged as the doors opened. The sound of a screaming toddler greeted them as they crossed into the hallway. A haggard looking woman and her peeved husband attempted to soothe a 3 year old and his baby sister as they stood in front of their hotel room door.

Bella and Jacob shared a look and ventured farther down the hall. A group of teenage girls noisily came from a room down at the end. They were wearing bathing suits. Very skimpy bathing suits. The chattering stopped abruptly when they noticed Jacob. Bella saw one of the girls nudge another in the ribs with her elbow. Both the girls raised their eyebrows and shared a giggle.

"Hey Handsome," the elbow-nudger - a tall, blonde vixen-looking girl appraised Jacob. She turned around, walking backwards as her group of friends continued on past Bella and Jacob. "When you're done dropping your little sister off in the room, come visit us at the pool," she called out to him.

Bella tried to ignore them.

"You're beautiful!" Another one yelled as they all giggled before stepping into the elevator.

Bella snuck a glance over at Jacob. His head was down and he had an embarrassed grin on his face. Even with his shaggy, shoulder-length hair choppily cut with kitchen shears just yesterday, and his white dress shirt wrinkled from sleeping in it last night, he _was_ still beautiful.

She looked down at herself and felt suddenly inadequate.

Jacob_** is**_ beautiful, she thought. Hadn't she told him that herself once? And there was no "sort of" about it. So why did those girls noticing it make her feel like crying?

"I put the card key in my pocket! I can't help it if it's not there now. Why didn't you bring yours?" The frazzled woman still standing outside the door with the kids asked her husband in irritation. "Go talk to the front desk and I'll wait here. No sense dragging the kids back downstairs."

Bella and Jacob looked at each other and shook their heads subtly. Time to try another floor. The husband trudged toward the elevator with the two of them. He rolled his eyes. "Don't ever get married and have kids," he muttered.

"I can hear you!" The wife hollered over her shoulder as the doors shut.

Jacob hit the button for the fifth floor and smiled at the husband before exiting the elevator. There was a maid cleaning one of the rooms at the end of the hall, and Bella, annoyed, started back for the elevator again.

"Where are you going?"

"We can't break into a room with a maid right there. She'll hear us," she told him.

"No. Wait a minute. Stay here." Jacob crept toward the room stealthily. He peered in, and Bella almost fell on the floor as he snuck into the room. He came back out in a flash and waved for her to join him.

"This room is empty and she's cleaning the bathroom. Quick, get in the closet." He grabbed her hand and pulled her around the corner to the open closet door. Bella could hear the water running in the other room as he shut the door quietly.

"What if she finds us in here?" she whispered.

"Then we'll run," he shrugged.

They could hear the faucet in the bathroom running a few minutes longer and then the maid came into the room only a few feet from them. They couldn't see what she was doing, but they could hear her as she bustled around the room, straightening. The wheels on her cart jangled as they rolled past them and they heard the door of the room close. Then there was silence.

The seconds ticked past and finally a slow grin spread across both their faces in the quiet.

"That was easy," she whispered.

"Well, now we just have to hope the room stays empty and no one checks in. Come on," he took her hand. "Are you hungry? Cos I am starving!"

"What are you going to do?" she asked him, following him into the open space of the room.

He picked up a couple of plastic fliers on the nightstand by the bed. "Bells, go peek out the door and tell me what the room number across the hall is, please."

"Number 245." She reported back to him.

They ordered a couple of cheeseburgers with fries and sodas and had them dropped off across the hall. Jacob asked room service to charge it to the room and not to knock, just leave it outside – the baby wasn't feeling well and had **finally** gone down for a nap.

Bella shook her head in admiration at him as she made her way to the bathroom. "I probably shouldn't be so impressed when it's so wrong. But I am."

Jacob grinned. "You're a very bad influence, Bells."

She flipped the light on and shut the door behind her. She held her breath and bit her lip when she took in her reflection in the mirror. How did Jacob manage to look so good, and she was such a wreck?

She had showered at the motel earlier that morning before they'd left, but because they had been pressed for time, she hadn't washed her hair. It was still piled up on her head in a loose knot, for the most part. But some of it had tumbled down and was hanging limply. Alice had put so much make-up on her that even though she had washed her face, she hadn't been able to scrub it all off. There were black smudges under eyes from the waterproof mascara that had adhered to her lashes like glue, and apparently was immune to mere soap andwater.

And the clothes… they were ridiculous. She looked like a homeless person.

She felt the tears well up. She ignored them and washed her face in cool water instead. Then she took the remaining bobby pins out of her hair. It tumbled down in a wave and she tried to comb it with her fingers.

That made her feel a little bit better, but not much.

She jumped when there was a knock on the door. "You okay in there, Bells?"

She sniffed and opened the door. She'd wiped away the few stray tears, but with one look, Jacob knew she'd been crying.

"What's the matter?"

"I look ridiculous," she sighed.

Before she could protest, Jacob began unbuttoning his shirt. "Here, I don't need this. Go ahead and put this on. You know I'm always warm. This will be big too, but," he chuckled. "Not like that wide load shirt you've got on."

It was too much.

"You would literally give me the shirt off your back," she choked, before throwing herself into his arms.

He wasn't expecting her reaction, but his arms reached around her automatically and held her.

"It's just a shirt, Bells," he murmured against the top of her head.

"It's more than that," she whispered. With her head still tight against his chest, her hands slid under her and over his stomach. She felt his breath hitch slightly as her palms coaxed higher, up over the sides of his ribs. She pulled her face back slightly so her fingers had deliberate access to his chest and shoulders. Jacob didn't even breathe as she slid the shirt back over his shoulders.

"Jake?" she asked tightly. "Do you remember there was a second thing I wanted you to do for me?"

He could hardly focus on her words over the goose bumps rising on his skin.

_Anything!_ He would do anything she asked him to.

Her fingers danced over his upper arms and across his biceps as she draped the shirt down and off him. He stared down at her, trying to catch her eyes, but she refused to meet his gaze.

Was she doing this on purpose? Or was he confusing an innocent gesture with something else?

_Dammit!_ He needed to see her face.

She tried to tug the right cuff off over his wrist, but it wouldn't fit over his large hand. She unfastened the buttons gently, and he fisted her hair when she freed his hand from the sleeve and picked it up and placed it against her cheek.

Her eyes were shut as she softly kissed his palm.

"Bella."

She dropped his hand when there was a knock at the door.

The tender moment was temporarily swept aside as they both froze in panic.

Jacob tore himself away begrudgingly and walked to the door. "Who is it?"

There was no answer, but the sound of running and laughter from the hallway. He tentatively opened the door after asking a second time who was there. The door from a few rooms down slammed shut and the muffled giggles went silent.

"Just kids." He rolled his eyes.

"I'm gonna take a shower," she told him.

Whatever had happened a few moments before was over.

"I'm gonna go down to the front desk and see if we can get some complimentary toiletries, like toothpaste. I doubt they have toothbrushes, but I'm gonna see what we can get besides soap and shampoo."

"See if you can get a brush, my hair is a mess." She ran her fingers through it for emphasis.

"I'll see what I can do."

"Hold on." She ducked inside the bathroom and shut the door. It reopened quickly and she peeked her head through it and held out the over-sized sweatshirt in her outstretched hand for him. He took it from her and pulled it on.

On a whim, he took the few steps that separated them and kissed the top of her head before he left her alone in the room.

**XXXXXXX**

A/N: This is Bella's wedding dress , front and back, that Jacob unbuttoned for her, and her Manolo Blahnik stilettos as worn in Breaking Dawn, that he broke the heels off of.

And this is the Seattle Seahawks sweatshirt that Bella wore.

If you're reading this on FFnet, you can see the picture on my Profile page.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Some people were complaining that the chapters for Sweet Hostage were a little too short, while others were getting impatient for Bella to finally tell Jacob what her second request was. Since I am one of those writers that desperately want to make everyone happy, this chapter is over 5,000 words, which can be read successively for those of you feeling that way inclined, or broken up and read at your leisure. This chapter had to be long to fit Bella's request and the subsequent aftermath all in there.

Special thanks to the lovely **light4dawn** who looked over the first half of this chapter and beta'd it for me. I met this writer while reading the J/B fic that she is working on now, called Ascent From Darkness. I was drawn in from Chapter One, and subsequently hunted down her other fics and read them all. She's an amazing writer, so check out Ascent From Darkness, and you can thank me later.

The second half of this chapter was written just last night and quickly edited by me alone, so I apologize for any mistakes that I may have missed. I am really _that_ anal and didn't want my chapter to be late!

Summary so far: Last week, we left Bella and Jacob at the Seattle Hilton and Convention Center, where they had broken into a room. Jacob had helped Bella out of her wedding dress by undoing all the buttons down the back. She then put on some clothes taken from a clothesline, which were not a great fit! At the end of Chapter 7, Jacob offered Bella his white dress shirt, and they shared a moment where Bella helped Jacob remove it. Enough talk. On to the chapter!

**Chapter Eight**

The lights on the neon Hilton Seattle sign were lit up as Bella gazed out the window. Their room overlooked the hotel parking lot, and she could see the Rabbit in the distance. Even from here, the pile of white silk and lace was visible draped across the back seat.

Before she allowed herself to wallow in the misery she'd created for herself, she forced herself to get into the shower. Hopefully by the time she was done, the food would be across the hall. Jacob probably wouldn't be gone long either, and he didn't have a card key to get back in.

Once she'd taken a quick shower and washed her hair, she wrapped a towel around herself and peeked out the door. The food still hadn't come and Jacob was nowhere to be seen. So she hurried back into the bathroom and dried her hair.

She picked her panties up off the floor and rolled her eyes. Alice had insisted Bella wear this uncomfortable thing underneath her dress. _We can't have panty lines on your wedding day, now can we?_ she'd said. The only problem was, they made Bella feel like she had a perpetual wedgie.

Oh well. She slid them back on and grabbed the leggings next. They were uncomfortable as well, and about 5 sizes too small. They had obviously belonged to a child. She yanked them up over her hips and a loud _riiiiipppp_ made her heart drop.

_No, no, no_! This day couldn't get any worse, could it? The whole inside seam on the upper right leg and crotch had torn apart.

She stood there in a daze, unsure of what to do now. Jacob would be back any minute. She'd no sooner had the thought, than there was a knock at the door. Her heart began hammering in her chest. It was probably Jacob, but it could be security or a hotel manager, maybe even the police! Maybe they'd figured out that they had broken in and were here to take them away. Wouldn't that just be the perfect ending to this insane weekend?

She pulled Jacob's shirt over her, wrapped it around her body, and headed for the door.

"Who is it?" She had to clear her throat and ask again as the words barely came out.

"It's me, Bells. Open up. Our food is here too."

"Hold on." She quickly fumbled with the buttons on the shirt and tugged the bottom down to make sure it covered her rear end. Okay. She looked around the room, trying to figure out if there was a way she could sit down and answer the door at the same time, so she wouldn't feel so bare and vulnerable. But unless she miraculously turned into Stretch Armstrong and could open the door from across the room, that wasn't going to happen.

"Bella? Are you there? Could you let me in?"

She shook her head and took a deep breath. She looked down at herself again. Jacob would have seen more of her if they'd gone swimming at the pool, right? What she was wearing could even be construed as sexy, if Mike Newton's girlie magazine stash she'd found in the stock room of Newton's was any indication.

"Bella?"

She ignored him and ran into the bathroom to look at herself in the mirror. Sexy. Did she want to look sexy? It _was _part of the reason she'd asked for another night with him, wasn't it? She just thought she'd have time to mentally prepare herself, to work her way to being halfway undressed.

Jacob's words in the car earlier rang through her head. _Beggars can't be choosers_. She unbuttoned the top button on the shirt and opened the door.

"Look Bells!" He told her excitedly, his hands full of goodies as he stepped into the room. "I hit the jackpo-"

He froze and she did the same. There was an uncomfortable silence, and Bella felt it was her place to fill it, since she'd probably just given the boy a huge shock.

"What did you get?" she asked, her voice surprising her as it came out casually. She felt a little lighter, less clumsy suddenly. Like she was in a costume for a play and her clothing was putting her in character.

Jacob hadn't moved or said a word. He still clutched his hotel swag in his hands.

Okay, now she was starting to feel downright _sultry_. She had never had an effect on anyone like _this_ before. Certainly not with Edward.

She smiled innocently at Jacob and plucked a comb from his hand. "Yes! You got one, thank you. What else you got there?"

"Uh, they gave me some toothpaste and toothbrushes," he said, seeming to regain some ground as the initial shock wore off. "They gave me all kinds of stuff. I told them I was with my family and the airline lost our luggage." He looked at her. "I think I've lied and committed enough crimes this one weekend to officially be sent to hell."

"Sorry," she told him, feeling guilty. It _was_ all her fault.

"No worries." He subtly looked down to take in all of her in his shirt. "I'm sure I was well on my way already, anyway."

Bella fidgeted uncomfortably, since he wasn't even trying to hide his stare now. "My pants ripped," she blurted out. "I went to put them on, and I pulled them up, and uh, yep. Rip!"

"This look is better. I'll go get the food." Her mouth dropped as he brushed past her to the door. Well, he'd recovered quickly. For just a moment, the scales had been tipped in her favor, and she was making him uncomfortable. She had kind of liked it, but now she could feel her stupid cheeks were red from his blatant stare of approval.

This night was her idea and she was determined not to chicken out. She refused to fall back into blushing, virginal Bella. Hadn't she held her own this afternoon when she'd asked him to unbutton her out of her dress? But then those stupid clothes and those slutty girls hitting on Jacob had thrown her off again.

Jacob kicked the door closed gently, carried the tray of food to the bed and set it down.

"I'm going to comb my hair really quick before we eat," she told him as he took a seat and grabbed a French fry off one of the plates. "Don't eat my French fries either," she teased.

"Better hurry then."

The comb was a cheap plastic comb/brush combo that opened up. She brushed the tangles out of her hair and flipped her head upside down, brushing the underside. When she flipped her head back up, she turned and jumped when she saw Jacob standing in the doorway. Staring at her ass. She always forgot just how big he was until she saw him in a setting like a doorway. He practically filled the whole space.

"You scared me."

"Your food is getting cold, and your French fries are calling to me."

She smiled. She held her breath when he didn't move completely out of her way, instead making her squeeze past him. She was acutely aware of her chest brushing across his ribs and her thighs grazing his as she maneuvered past him.

He leaned against the doorway as she sat on the bed to eat.

"Bells? Can I ask you a question?"

She nodded.

"What are you going to do when we get back?"

She chewed her fry slowly and swallowed. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, what are you going to do? You said you wanted an annulment… does that mean you and him… is it over? Are you still going to stay with him? Are you still going to let him… change you?" He mouthed the last two words tightly, his hands curled into fists, though his face remained a cool mask.

"No! No, Jacob, I told you. With Edward… for me… it was always all or nothing. I couldn't let him stay with me and watch me get old. How would that be for him? That's not fair."

"So you're not going to change?"

"No," she reassured him adamantly.

"Can I ask you something else?" he continued before she could respond. "Why did you want to? I mean, why, Bella? Why would you want to be one of _them_?"

"I just - you wouldn't understand, Jacob. Look at you. I mean, you're perfect. I just wanted a change. I wanted a chance to be… better," she finished lamely.

"I _do_ understand that, Bella. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be better. You can always be better, you can always improve yourself. But you didn't want to do the work. You just wanted a quick fix. So you jumped into this, took the easy way out and stuck your head in the sand to the consequences."

He paused, flexing his hands to calm himself and took a deep breath. "Why do you think Edward doesn't want to change you? Wh-"

"What makes you think Edward doesn't want to change me?" she interrupted defensively.

"He told me. That night in the tent. He said he didn't want to change you, but you were stubborn and insisting on it. He was going to stall you for as long as he could."

She didn't answer, just picked at a loose thread on the bedspread.

"Why do you think he doesn't want to change you, Bella?" He asked a little more softly this time. "Because he knows better than anyone that it's not a good choice."

"But Carlisle changed the others!" she protested.

"It was either that or be dead! Why don't you get that?" He walked closer toward the bed and pulled up the chair alongside the desk beside her. He sat down in it, straddling the back, facing her. "What is so wrong with your life? Huh? What?" He shook his head. "You're not pretty enough? Bullshit. You're not rich enough? You know money won't make you happy. So what is it, Bella? What?"

"I'm just not good enough!" she yelled at him.

"For who, Bella? You always were to me."

She didn't know what to do or say. She didn't know how to explain it to him. He'd never understand how flawed she was. The never feeling good enough. Especially next to Edward and his family. They were more than anything she could ever aspire to be. She constantly pushed aside the nagging feeling of inadequacy that only magnified whenever she was with Edward.

When she was with Jacob all that got muddled. She was too busy having fun. He made her feel attractive and witty. Her many inadequacies became cute and endearing around him. Sometimes she even found herself using her natural clumsiness and awkwardness to make him laugh. He _appreciated_ those traits in her.

Not that Edward didn't, but her own defectiveness and incompetency made her unable to just be herself with him. She always wanted to impress him, yet failed miserably.

Jacob sighed and got up from his chair, running his hand through his hair. "I'm gonna take a shower."

She could tell he was frustrated with her now.

He started toward the bathroom and then turned to her with a small smile. "I meant to tell you, you look really cute, by the way. My clothes look good on you."

Bella sat on the bed and picked at the few remaining French fries on her plate. She heard the bathroom door close and the water start. What happened to her big seduction scene? She'd lost control of the situation again. A reminder of how incompetent she was, had kind of killed the mood.

She had to let Jacob know how she felt _tonight_. It could be her last chance to be alone with him for a while. Once they got back home, she had a lot of clean-up to do. What a mess.

_Focus_.

She was not good at this. Every time she tried to seduce Edward, she felt kicked to the curb afterward. But… Jacob was _**not **_Edward. All Jacob would need was a little encouragement, a little nudge to let him know she was receptive.

She could hear the water in the shower running, and thought… maybe… maybe she could… no. She couldn't. She just wasn't brazen enough to get into the shower with him. Plus, coming from her, that was liable to give the poor boy a heart attack. The shock might kill him.

No, she couldn't do that. But _maybe_…

Jacob was lathering the shampoo in his hair, when he heard the soft _click_ of the doorknob turning. He hadn't locked the door because… well, it wasn't like Bella would come in. His eyes were shut so he wouldn't get soap in them, but his hands stopped their movement as he listened. His nose picked up on her scent. _Was she in here?_

"Bella?" He heard the click of the door closing again, and he quickly stuck his face under the running water, to wash away any soap around his eyes. He opened them and pulled the shower door back slightly, peeking his head out to survey the bathroom. The room was empty. That was weird.

He rinsed all the shampoo from his hair and turned off the water. Stepping from the shower stall, he grabbed a towel and rubbed the excess dampness from his hair. He really should get a proper haircut soon. He wrapped the thick white towel around his waist and reached for his shirt.

_What the… ?_

His clothes were gone. He looked all around. Had they fallen on the floor? Had he put them up on the towel rack? Had he hung them behind the door? Where the hell were his clothes? His eyes grew large as a thought came to him. Had Bella come in here and taken his clothes? Why would she - ?

He opened the door. "Oh, Bella?" he called out into the room in a sing-song voice.

"Yes?" she answered him sweetly.

"Did you happen to see my clothes, by any chance?"

"Oh, you mean these?"

He stuck his head out to peer into the room as she picked them up off the bed and held them up.

"Those would be the ones, yes." He snickered. "Could you give them to me, please, so I can get dressed?"

"Oh. You want to get dressed?"

"Uh-huh."

"Oh. Well, come and get them then."

"Bella," he told her seriously, but with a smile on his face. "I WILL come out and get them."

"Okay. Well, they're right here." She held onto them and put them on her lap.

Jacob rewrapped the towel around his hips and tightened it, then walked out into the room.

Bella's own reaction startled her. She knew what Jacob looked like without a shirt. She'd seen him hundreds of times. But it had been so long, and something about the fact that it was just a towel between her and… him. A towel that she knew from experience could slip oh-so-easily if one wasn't careful. She felt her heart literally lurch when he came toward her.

He held out his hand for his clothes, and she just smiled sweetly at him, not offering to hand them over.

"Oh, it's like that, is it?"

"You want them?" Her voice cracked when she spoke, but she didn't cave. "You have to get them from me."

He went to lunge for her, but she'd anticipated that that was what he was going to do, so she rolled aside and sprang from the bed. He had only made a half-hearted attempt, she knew, or he would have caught her. She ran to the other side of the bed.

"They're right here," she teased, waving them in front of her like a matador's cape.

She expected him to run around the bed toward her, but instead he jumped onto the bed and over it so fast, she didn't even have time to blink. He grabbed her and pulled the sweatshirt and pants out of her hands. They were both laughing and breathless, and she squealed when he caught her.

His arm was around her waist, and her hands were against his chest. He looked down at the clothes in his other hand and tossed them onto the bed.

"I don't really want them that much," he told her before he crashed his lips against hers. His grip around her waist tightened and he pulled her against him.

Her arms slid from his chest up over his shoulders and around his neck.

His mouth wasted no time parting her lips, his tongue finding hers. His grip tightened when she responded with a soft, but audible moan. He wasn't sure what she was playing at, but he wasn't in the mood to ask questions.

He hadn't told her earlier, because he didn't want to embarrass her; but the way she was seated on the bed alongside the light from the lamp on the bedside, he could see her breasts illuminated perfectly beneath the white shirt. The perky little mounds, topped with what he was sure were Crayola crayon pink nipples, strained against the fabric. It was all he could do to stop himself from reaching for them and pinching the erect nubs.

It would have been only fair, as her hands were all over him. Pulling on the hair at the nape of his neck one minute, and then gliding down over his chest, running her fingers over his pecs. He gathered her hair in one hand and pulled it to one side, dragging his lips from hers and planting his hot mouth against her throat.

She threw her head back, reveling in the moist heat. This was so different from what she was used to. She'd had a tiny taste of it last spring, the morning of the newborn fight, on top of the mountain. His warmth, his strength, his _size_ was so different from Edward's cold, hard and unyielding body that she had become accustomed to.

She could hardly concentrate as Jacob continued to kiss her. It was with such… abandon. It was a far cry from the restraint she was used to.

It made her feel reckless. And a little afraid, as well.

"Jake?" his grip on her upper arms loosened when she spoke, but he continued to kiss her neck. "Jacob?"

He sighed and pulled back, readjusting and tightening the towel around his hips.

"Remember when I told you there were two things that I wanted you to do?"

"Mm-hmm. You wanted me to get you away from the wedding reception, and then something else that you said you would tell me later."

"Uh-huh. Well, I – I'm ready to ask you the other thing now."

"Anything." He absently pulled all her hair to one side again; ready to dive back into the crease of that neck as soon as he agreed to whatever she wanted from him now.

"I've been wanting this for a long time, but," she hesitated, looking down, not sure where to begin. "I never really wanted to get married," she confessed. "It was the only way I could get Edward to agree to–to… make love to me," she told him, embarrassed. "He'd always said It was too dangerous, and – "

"He's right!" Jacob yelled, interrupting.

"No, wait, wait. Let me just explain something. He convinced me that if I married him, he would try – "

"He _**manipulated**_ you, you mean," Jacob interrupted again.

"We compromised," Bella protested, not really believing her own words. "He said if I married him, and we were man and wife that he would try. But, in the meantime, he just… " She bit her lip. "He just kept pushing me away! This whole last year!" her voice rose.

She paused and forced her emotions down. "It must have been making me angrier than I was admitting. It was all I could do to stop myself from yelling at him that if _he_ couldn't take care of me, then I was going to… I was going to go to La Push." The last words came out a whisper.

Jacob's eyes grew wide and she could see the hurt he tried to hide there. "You were going to use me to get back at him?"

She lowered her head in shame. "At first," she admitted. "But then," she shook her head. "The more I tried not to think about it, the more I couldn't stop, and then the idea took on a life of its own, and… " she swallowed hard and then looked up into his eyes. "And then I wanted it."

He dragged her against him again.

"I was afraid to even let myself _**think**_ about it," she whispered against his chest. "I was afraid that you would see it written all over my face, or that Alice would see it and confront me, or tell someone." She pulled back to look at him. "Then, after the wedding invitations went out, I didn't even know where you were! I thought for sure you _hated_ me! But I still couldn't _stop_ thinking about it. The more I fought it, the more I wanted it." She laid her forehead against his chest again, embarrassed.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I couldn't! For exactly the reason you said! I didn't want you to think I was using you." She shook her head vigorously. "But I wouldn't have been. I wouldn't," she murmured, standing on her tip-toes and kissing his neck.

He begrudgingly pulled himself away. "So what are you asking me, Bella? What exactly is your second request?"

She swallowed. She felt her own cheeks get hot, but refused to tear her gaze away from his. "Make love to me?"

He blinked, surprised. "Does this mean – "

She placed her hand over his lips. "No questions asked, remember?"

His eyes were dark and fervent, but he nodded.

He took her face in his hands, pulling it toward his own. He kissed her gently, some of the desperation of his previous ones, gone.

He pulled her against him; satisfied in a way he'd never dreamed of, knowing that she wanted him. As much as he'd dreamed of this, now he knew that she did too.

Bella felt his hands tickle up the backs of her thighs and hesitantly glide under the bottom of her shirt and squeeze her bottom. His grip managed to pull her lower body against him. Close enough to feel there was something going on under that towel.

She arched her back, throwing her head back and Jacob used the new position to his advantage, letting his mouth move down her body, to the top button just between her breasts. He licked the skin there as his hands came up her back and around, to cup each separate breast. His big hands completely covered each mound perfectly. He squeezed them together, softly kissing her cleavage. She felt his fingers undo the top button, and then the next. Once he'd completely undone all the buttons on her shirt, he spread it open like a present. The look on his face told her it was all he could have asked for and more. He watched his own fingers as they reached for her collarbone, and trailed down over her breasts reverently.

"Jake," she whimpered, pulling his face to her. When his teeth and tongue hit her nipple, his grip on her ribs tightened as her legs buckled under her.

"Maybe we should move this to the bed," he told her.

He hesitated. "Wait." He slid the shirt over her shoulders first and watched it drop to the floor. He wanted the picture he'd had in his head yesterday, of Bella standing before him in her white thong to be realized before he did anything else.

Her hands flew to her breasts and she covered herself, looking down at the floor. "Bella," he took each of her hands in his and pulled them gently away. "You're perfection."

He laid her down on the bed and climbed over her, looking at her body underneath his before he lowered himself down on top of her.

She became aware of _**Jacob**_ pressed against her and bit her lip to muffle the moan that escaped. His mouth was back at her breasts, licking and sucking, and her back arched, encouraging him. His hand reached behind her knee and pulled it back, bending it. His fingers danced up and down her thigh, coming dangerously close to the crease of her panties, between her legs.

Her breath was coming way too quickly, and then it choked off completely, when his fingers finally skimmed all the way up her thigh, and over her panties right at her core. The sensation made her body buck reflexively. His palm moved up and smoothed across her stomach, making circular patterns as it came down closer to the elastic at the top of her underwear. She held her breath when his fingertips crept underneath and his index finger slid carefully between her folds and right over her swollen clit.

He pulled the flimsy white material down over her legs and tossed it aside. He took her by surprise when he spread her legs and maneuvered himself, his mouth suddenly on the inside of her thigh.

He inhaled and smelled her sweet scent. He'd imagined tasting her so many times in his dreams, he hoped she didn't mind if he stayed right there all night long. Well, he may want to try a _few_ other things too, but he planned to camp out between her legs and lick her till she couldn't stand it anymore.

He was taking his time, teasing her just a little, kissing every inch of thigh that he could. Every time his tongue came close to her core, she'd jerk her hips slightly and her heart rate would kick up.

He was teasing himself just as much as he was teasing her. He wanted to bury his face between her thighs and make her feel things she'd never felt before. Things that leech, with his rock-hard mouth, razor-sharp, venom-soaked teeth, and cold popsicle tongue could never make her feel.

He blew softly on the moist flesh and she pumped her hips again and groaned. He could see in the dark, a glimpse of her pink sweetness, partway opened up to him. He couldn't wait any longer, she was ready, he was more than ready, what was he waiting for?

He lowered his face to her, and finally, _finally_, tasted Bella. He could feel her hard little nub and he flicked his tongue over it, her tiny gasps of pleasure his reward. He'd come back to that. He gave it one last little swirl and then dove his tongue inside her, as deep as he could. He grabbed hold of her hips when she thrust them upwards at him. She tasted so fucking good, it was making him dizzy. He had to reach down and adjust himself, as he was straining against the towel, his erection so hard, it was tight against his belly.

Her little feet were moving, her toes flexing against the bedspread. Jacob replaced his tongue with a finger, and practically exploded himself as he eased it inside her. The feel of her tight little channel around him, made his erection throb.

He went back to her clit, which had doubled in size, and used his tongue, flicking and swirling, rubbing the little nub with accelerated speed. Her knees spread out wider and she grabbed onto his hair with both hands, making little whimpering noises. A moment later, her knees closed, locked against either side of his head.

"_**Oh god**_! Jacob. Ooohh, that's so good. Oh, Jacob." She spoke in a long moan as her body convulsed and gripped. Even once her knees finally relaxed and her grip on his hair loosened, he stayed put, content to lick away all the juices he'd just created.

She continued to make incomprehensible little moans, her head rocking from side to side.

"Stop," she finally whispered. "Stop. Come here." She took hold of his shoulders and pushed him off her, so he was on his knees between her legs. She pushed herself onto her own knees in front of him.

He looked at her curiously in the darkened room, and watched as she reached out and took hold of the towel that was still wrapped around him. His hard-on was making a gigantic tent in the front. She smiled shyly at him, before she dropped her gaze and undid the loosened ends. He watched her face as she pulled the towel away. He almost grinned when he saw her eyes grow round, and he hoped she wasn't afraid of him.

He flinched when she reached out and swept her hand across him, before wrapping her fingers around his length and stroking him timidly. He shut his eyes and tried to think of something else, much as he wanted to give in to the sensation. But since he desperately wanted to last more than 30 seconds, he started doing multiplication in his head.

His eyes were shut, so he jumped when he felt her lips on his stomach. Then his eyes shot open when he felt her tongue on the tip of his shaft.

_**Jesus!**_ Was she trying to kill him?

"Bella! Bella? Why don't we just… "

She shook her head, holding onto the base of his shaft and swirling her tongue over the head like he was a Tootsie Pop.

"Honey," he choked. "Please, I'm not going to be able to… _agh_."

She put her little tongue back in her mouth and looked up at him. "But I want to."

"Next time." He took her face in his hands and pulled her up and away from his hard-on that was ready to _**pop**_ like a firework on the 4th of July.

She laid back on the bed and pulled him down on top of her.

_**Ah hell!**_

"Bella, honey, I don't… "

He knew he should have kept a couple condoms in his wallet! He had one in his old wallet, but he'd had it in there since the 7th grade and he didn't know if it was any good anymore, so he'd given it to Quil.

Now he felt like crying. He laid his forehead against her shoulder, his eyes closed tight. "I don't have a condom, honey."

She scurried out from under him, and leaned over the side of the bed, picking her shoe up off the floor.

"I do." She pulled a blue wrapper out of the front of her shoe and handed it to him with a little smirk.

"You had a condom? In your shoe? What – why?"

"I didn't think you'd be there yesterday to rescue me, but I still hoped… "

"You stuck this in your shoe on the off chance that I would show up yesterday? You put this in your shoe because of _**me?**_?"

She giggled, embarrassed, and nodded. She leaned in and gave him a quick kiss. "I brought two. Now use it," she murmured against his lips.

Jacob didn't have to be told twice. He peeled the wrapper open, almost dropping it in his hurry, and rolled it onto his length.

He heard Bella's pulse hike up again, and looked up to see her watching with widened eyes. He grabbed her and pulled her against him, loving the feeling of his cock against her silky soft skin.

"Now come here little girl, this will only hurt a little," he teased, easing her down onto the bed. She giggled breathlessly, her nervousness apparent underneath.

The head of his shaft slid against her wetness. He took his time and didn't rush, he knew she was scared. He made no attempt to enter her, just let her get used to feeling him against her. He placed his hand on her cheek and kissed her softly. As the kisses deepened, he gently moved his hips, easing just the tip in.

Bella pushed her hips against him, wanting more, her tongue dipping into Jacob's mouth, searching for his.

He pumped a little harder, his head dizzy with the slippery tightness gripping him. He was fighting his basic instincts, determined not to thrust too hard and hurt her. But it wasn't easy.

Once he got about halfway in, he felt her body clench tight and knew he'd hit it. He tried to distract her with kisses, caressing her thighs and breasts, while gently pushing his way in. He kept waiting for her to protest, but the only sounds she made, were small whimpers.

A few moments later, and he was in.

_All. The. Way. In._

Bella was still moving her hips, so he knew she wasn't in too much pain, but he continued to pump gently. It was amazing. He couldn't believe it. He was making love to Bella.

And then it was too much.

The tightness.

The wetness.

The heat.

Her hips moving under his. Meeting every one of his thrusts.

"Oh, Jacob."

That was it. She said his name and he exploded inside her.

"Bella."

They lay together, still connected, no words needing to be spoken. He didn't ever want to get up. He didn't ever want to _**not **_be joined together with her.

"I love you Jacob."

He smiled the happiest smile of his life when she mumbled those words to him, right on the verge of sleep.

"I love you too, Bells."

**XXXXXXXX**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Bella woke up from a dream and looked at the clock on the nightstand. Five o'clock am. She had been dreaming of Phoenix; standing in front of her old house, her hand shielding her eyes from the sun beating down on her.

No wonder; Jacob was still half on top of her, their legs entwined and his arm across her chest. She was sweating from the heat.

She tried to ease her way out from under him without waking him, but he was too big and heavy. So she just removed his arm from across her and laid it against her side.

She swept a lock of hair away from his face and stared at him in the semi-darkness; his thick dark brows, high cheekbones, and his perfect, perfect mouth. She lightly traced his lips with her finger, a heat warming her belly at the memory of all the things he was capable of doing with those beautiful, pouty lips.

_I've got mad skills_, she remembered him telling her all those months ago, when she'd brought him the two beat-up motorcycles to recycle.

_Yes,_ she had to agree with a smile, _he certainly did_.

Jacob took a quick, loud inhale, shaking his head as he woke from a sound sleep. She didn't move as he opened his eyes lazily and locked onto hers. Her finger was still resting against his lips, and he pursed them, kissing her finger softly.

"Hey," he smiled, stretching.

"Hey," she grinned back at him. Her finger dropped from his lips and traced a path over his chest and down to his belly, all the way to the patch of dark hair at his groin. Her smile widened. She could touch him anywhere she wanted and he not only wouldn't mind – he'd _**like**_ it!

Little did she know the identical thought was going through his mind. He grabbed hold of her waist and drew her closer, dropping his mouth to the roundness at the top of her breast peeking out just above the sheets. He breathed a satisfied hum as he kissed her there.

"So what were you saying last night about me being allowed to do certain things 'next time'?" she asked him, as he hardened and lengthened in her hand.

He gasped when she squeezed her hand tightly around him and began a slow, smooth stroke against his silky length. He watched her with heated eyes and a little bit of amusement as she realigned herself, bringing her mouth down to taste him. His hand flew up and covered his eyes when her warm mouth made contact.

She contented herself, trying different movements with her tongue, experimenting with the grip of her mouth around him, along with different hand/mouth combinations. Barely five minutes passed before Jacob pulled her away.

"Jesus, Bella, that was… " he shook his head. There were no words to describe what she did to him.

"Why did you make me stop then?"

"Because I want to – I mean, didn't you say last night you had two condoms?"

She smiled happily and nodded her head, reaching over the side of the bed again for her shoe.

"What else you got in there?" he asked her.

"Nothing else, just a condom," she murmured, tearing the package open. He reached for it, and she pulled her hand back. "I want to do it."

She was so cute. "Okay. Have at it." He leaned back against the pillows, watching her with an amused grin on his face. "No, no," he laughed. "Don't unroll it. Just put the top of it on, and roll it down."

She bit her lip in concentration, adjusting the condom over the top and attempting to unroll it over him. "This is hard," she mumbled, concentrating.

"That's what she said," he cracked. "Need some help?"

"No! I've got it. God, you're huge, this barely covers the whole thing, and it seems like a really tight fit."

He nodded a little self-consciously. "I'm a little bigger than most, but trust me, that'll work."

"How do you know it'll work? How did you even know how to get that on last night?"

A nervous look passed over Jacob's features, and her stomach lurched. "Jacob?"

"Come here, honey." He pulled her up alongside him and kissed her, tired of conversation. "God, you are so perfect." He ran his hands over her smooth pale skin.

She surprised him when she climbed on top of him. "Can we try it like this?"

"We can try it any way you like, honey." His hands grasped her hips as she took hold of him and lined him up, before slowly lowering herself down on him.

"Ow," she grimaced slightly as she was spread open, engulfing him.

"You okay?" She nodded to his question. "Just take your time," he told her. It was killing him, but if she needed to go slow and easy, that was okay.

She needed to stop and start a couple of times before she finally had all of him inside her. Then she needed a moment to wrap her head around that. But finally, she began rocking back and forth on top of him.

Just the visual of Bella naked on top of him was enough to push him over the edge, so he kept his eyes shut tight and tried to think of other things. She thrust and moved and rocked as Jacob pumped up into her. He reached down and found her swollen bundle, caressing the little nub till it seemed to get harder under his finger. Bella's rocking picked up speed and force, her movements getting bigger and her breath getting tighter.

Jacob opened his eyes to watch. Bella's head was thrown back, legs spread, breasts bouncing slightly, her hands on either side of his rib cage, as she pushed off against him for momentum. He felt her body twitching around him just before a low groan came from somewhere deep inside her. Then it felt like someone grabbed hold of his cock and squeezed, pulsing around him. He grabbed hold of her hip with his free hand, his other hand still between her legs, rubbing gently.

He joined her with a groan of his own, climaxing inside her, just before she collapsed on top of him.

God, life didn't get any better than this, he thought.

Bella lay on top of him, catching her breath. She couldn't imagine doing that with anyone other than Jacob. It felt so right.

Finally, she rolled off him, so she was lying alongside of him, facing him. She smiled and kissed him softly. He took hold of her face and kissed her back.

"Where did you learn to kiss so good?" she asked him playfully.

"I'm just a natural. All Indians are good kissers. It's a proven fact."

"Really? Hmmm. You mean Quil and Embry are good kissers too?"

"Well, not that I'd know personally, and I'm sure not as good as me, but yeah."

"Mmm-hmmm." She ducked her head, kissing his ear before whispering into it. "Have you ever kissed anyone besides me?"

She'd meant it as a joke, but again, her stomach lurched at his reaction. He fidgeted and didn't answer the question. She'd been going for a laugh, an embarrassed acknowledgement that she was his first and only kiss. Now she wished she hadn't asked. But of course, now she had to know.

"**Have** you ever kissed anyone else?" She pulled back to look at his face.

"Well, yeah," he said, avoiding her eyes.

"You have? Who?"

"Just forget it, Bella. It's not important." He tried to pull her face back down to his, but she pulled away.

"It is important. Who?"

"No one you know. Just some girls from the rez."

"Girl**zzzz**, as in plural?"

"Geez, Bella. They weren't important. Why are you getting mad?" He pushed himself up on his elbows. "It's not like we were together. It's not like I cheated on you or anything. It's not like _**I**_ flat-out dumped you in the middle of our relationship for someone else." Now he was looking at her accusingly, and she knew he was referring to when Edward came back from Italy and she dumped Jacob like a hot potato.

"I'm not mad at you," she said softly. "I'm just surprised. Can I ask when?"

"When I kissed these other girls?" She nodded and he rolled his eyes, pulling at the front of his hair. "Agh, I kissed the first one in between the time you left for Italy and then came back from Florida with _him_. I only went out on a few dates with her, and we stopped seeing each other just before you came back."

"Wow, you didn't waste any time," she murmured, hurt.

"You weren't my girlfriend, Bella." His voice was cool. "You didn't want a relationship with me. You wanted to be _**friends**_, remember? That's what you kept telling me. What the hell was I supposed to do? If you recall, I was a little pissed off at you at the time."

She bit her lip and nodded. She had no business being mad at him. She'd run off to save Edward. She'd do it again too, only because she didn't want anyone to kill themselves over her, but she wouldn't have just left Jacob hanging this time. And she wouldn't have thrown herself back into Edward's arms as soon as they landed in Washington. She would have wished Edward the best and gone back home alone.

"What about the others?"

"I don't know," he ran his hand over his face. "There were two after the newborn fight, before I… before I got your wedding invitation and wolfed out."

"Did you sleep with any of these girls?"

"Bella. Do we have to do this? Come on. It doesn't matter, _they_ don't matter. I love you. I've always loved you."

"It shouldn't matter," she said, more to herself. "I have no right to judge you or expect you to be a saint and sit around and wait for me. But now that it's out there, I have to know. Please, tell me. Did you sleep with any of them?"

"Yes."

"Yes," she repeated, stunned. "How many of them?"

He didn't answer right away, but finally he met her eyes. "All three of them." He reached up and touched her cheek. "Please tell me you're not mad. I love you, and that's all that matters. You know I do. But I was angry, Bella. I was angry and I was desperate! Desperate to get over you, desperate to forget you. I just wanted to get lost in someone, so the pain from losing you in my life wouldn't hurt so much. I tried to use them as a quick fix, but it didn't work, and I just came off like a dick. If I could take it all back, I would. But I can't. I'm not proud."

She didn't say anything, and for a crushing moment, he thought he'd blown it.

"Bella?"

"It's okay," she kissed his cheek. "I'm disappointed, but it's okay. I wanted to be your first."

"I know. If I had known, trust me, I would have waited, honey. You just told me so many times, over and over, that you wanted him and not me, I had to try to accept it and get over you. I'm sorry."

"No apologies." She laid her head against him and whispered into his chest. "So did you? Get over me, I mean?"

"Does it _**look**_ like I did?"

She gave him a sad smile.

"The only way I could get over you, would be to do this." Before she knew what hit her, Jacob flipped them, so Bella was now flat on her back and Jacob hovered above her. "There. Now I'm over you," he smiled.

She giggled in spite of herself. So Jacob was human. She knew she had really hurt him, and he'd tried to make himself feel better. It wasn't a crime. She wasn't going to let it spoil the moment. It was her fault, after all.

He was here now. He'd helped her get away, no questions asked. He'd put himself in peril, and broken the law for her. Not to mention, he'd put aside his grief and hard feelings just to say goodbye to her after she'd married another man. Not just any man, but his natural born enemy. Jacob certainly didn't have to prove his loyalty to her.

She craned her neck, reaching up to kiss him. For a brief moment, she thought he was mad at her, when he didn't respond. She watched his face as it changed expressions in rapid-fire time. First she saw hesitation, then curiosity, then he growled in anger just as the hotel room burst open.

The door shut and Edward and Alice stood frozen like statues just 10 feet from the bed, staring mutely at the two of them.

It happened so fast, one second she was looking at Jacob and the next she turned her head and Alice and Edward were before her. Bella squealed and pulled the covers up over her chin, as Jacob rolled off her, glaring at the two of them.

No one said a word for a full minute.

"Are you alright, love?" Edward broke the silence.

Bella nodded, unable to speak. She heard a low hiss and then a snarl emit from Edward and his eyes glared daggers in Jacob's direction.

"She's more than alright," Jacob smirked.

"I told you this wasn't a good idea," Edward said quietly to Alice.

"Fight for her," she instructed him under her breath.

"Ho-how did you find me?" Bella asked them, still stunned.

"I saw you," Alice told her. "You were looking out the window at the Seattle Hilton sign last night. Edward was at your father's house, hoping you'd come back. As soon as I found him, we came straight here." She held out a bag. "I-I brought you some clothes to change into, since you were dressed very… um, scantily."

"Thanks," she murmured, embarrassed.

"Stop that!" Edward gave Jacob a sharp look, baring his teeth. Jacob just smiled and had the good grace to look down. Bella could only imagine what silent thoughts Jacob was throwing Edward's way.

"Come on, Bella," Alice said gently. "I'll help you get dressed, and we can go home. Boys," she addressed to Jacob and Edward, "leave us alone."

"No!" Bella pulled the covers up tighter around her. "Jacob, don't go."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"How did you get in?" Bella stalled, uncomfortable.

"Edward jimmied the lock," Alice beamed proudly at Edward.

"How did you learn to do that?" Bella smiled tentatively.

"I don't sleep, remember? I have a lot of time on my hands. I can do lots of things," Edward explained, looking slightly relieved that she had spoken directly to him.

"Hey, I know something you can't do," Jacob piped in.

"Jacob," Bella looked at him warningly.

"What? I was going to say 'eat'." He fibbed. "What did you think I was going to say?"

He continued to stare at Edward, gloating slightly.

"Stop that!" Edward growled at Jacob again.

"Get out of my head. I had a great night. I can't help it if I can't stop thinking about it."

"Jacob," Bella said, horrified. "Stop it!"

Edward's jaw was tensed, and Bella could see his hands balled into fists, but his voice managed to somehow remain calm and smooth as silk. "You're doing it on purpose. You're enjoying yourself, aren't you?"

"Kinda," Jacob told him smugly.

Bella sat up as she saw Edward take a few steps closer to the bed, his hard eyes trained on Jacob. She immediately sat back down as the covers began to fall off her and she realized she was going to be in a compromising position, given she wasn't wearing any clothes underneath the thin blankets.

But Edward stopped just short of the bed, and his gaze fervently returned to her. "Come home," he pleaded softly. "You were curious." He swallowed unnecessarily and lowered his voice. "You were curious about sex. That's understandable. But now that you've experienced it, you can come back with us."

"You can't be serious!" Jacob broke in. "What do you think? I'm some little science experiment she performed? You're sick."

All eyes were on Bella, waiting on how to proceed. She covered her face with her hands and took a deep breath.

"I'm ready to go home," she whispered.

"What?" Jacob turned to her, surprised.

Edward smiled, relieved, "That's a good girl. Let's go home."

"No," Bella shook her head. "Wait. I'm ready to go home. We need to talk. But… I'm going back with Jacob. I will call you when we get there."

"What did I do, Bella? Did I do something wrong? I don't understand." Edward's face crumpled. If he were capable of crying, it was obvious that he would be doing just that.

"Oh, Edward. You didn't do anything wrong. Please don't blame yourself. I shouldn't have run off like I did. I shouldn't have brought Jacob into it. I should have never let it go so far." She sighed. "But it's too late; I did. And you will never know how sorry I am for making such a mess of everything."

She shook her head. "Please, I need to get dressed. Go home, both of you," she told Alice and Edward. "I'll be home before nightfall. I'll leave my window open."

"Your window open? You're going to your father's? But Bella, your home is with us now."

Bella shook her head sadly. "I don't know where my home is, anymore."

Edward dropped to his knees alongside the bed and took her hand, kissing the back of it. Bella could hear a soft snarl from Jacob alongside of her.

"You do what you need to do, Bella. I'll be waiting. If you want to go to your father's, then I'll wait for your invitation when you open the window. Just, please remember, I love you. No matter what." He kissed her cheek softly. "Goodbye." With a wistful smile at Bella, and a glance at Jacob, he added, "Mrs. Cullen."

And they were gone. The only proof that they had been there, the bag of clothes left on the chair that Alice left for Bella.

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

_A/N: Wishing all of you a warm and fun-filled Merry Christmas!_


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: First off, I just want to say I am so excited to present my new banner. I have so many people to thank for it. First, thank you to Jake's Girl__who sent this manip my way because it reminded her of Sweet Hostage. I had to agree, and instantly fell in love with it. Next, I went to Mist, knowing she could make it into an awesome banner, as she did my last one for me. You can view some of her other work here: __.com/profile/Mist__ And most of all, thanks to the uber-talented Juliya3DAngel, whose beautiful artwork you can view here: .com/ . Thank you to all three of these talented ladies!_

**Chapter Ten**

Bella rolled onto her stomach, hiding her head in the pillow.

"This is all my fault," she groaned.

"It's not _all_ your fault," Jacob reassured her, smoothing back her hair. "Just… partly."

She answered him with another groan.

"Did you at least tell him at some point that you didn't want to get married?"

"Yes! I told him repeatedly I didn't want to get married." She rolled over onto her back, so her voice wasn't muffled into the pillow and he could hear her better. "At first, I just kept outright telling him 'no' when he'd ask me to marry him. But then he kept using marriage as a compromise for what I wanted from him."

"Bella? That's not compromising. That's manipulation. I think you've got the two confused." He placed his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling, thinking. "What did you want from him? Oh – never mind."

He sighed again and rolled out of the bed. "I'm going to take a shower. I guess we'd better hit the road before someone tries to check-in."

He padded to the bathroom silently. He came out 30 minutes later, dressed and hair dried. Bella silently took her turn, then they gathered up their few things and left.

**XXXXXXXXX**

After a very quiet drive home, with both of them deep in thought, Jacob pulled up to the Swan residence. He left the car idling as he turned to her to say goodbye.

"Want me to stay?" he asked her.

"No. I need to face Charlie on my own. But I may need you later, okay?"

"Sure, sure," he smiled, relieved. He was afraid that after seeing Edward that morning, she would forget everything the two of them had said and done together last night and this morning.

"I'll call you," she told him, leaning in and kissing him on the cheek.

It was barely 4:00 in the afternoon. They'd made pretty good time, despite the terrible traffic. Much to Bella's relief, Jacob had balled up her wedding dress and shoved it in the trunk before they'd left the Hilton. She didn't want to drag it in past Charlie right now - the evidence of her failure right in her hands - so she didn't mention it. She'd get it some other time. Maybe she and Jake could start a bonfire with it on First Beach before summer was over.

She was just about to slam the car door when she heard him. "Love you, Bells."

She leaned down and looked in at him. "I love you too. Thank you, Jake. Thank you for _everything_." She climbed back into the seat and hugged him tight.

She stood back from the car and watched him pull away, before she started for the house. The cruiser was in the driveway, so she knew Charlie was home. She didn't know what his reaction was going to be, and aside from embarrassment, she felt a little nervous, too.

She started to knock, but reached for the doorknob instead, and found the front door unlocked. She pushed it open and came into the entryway, closing the door and locking it behind her. As she started for the stairway, Charlie came around the corner from the living room, and halted midway on his way to the door.

They both stared silently for a moment at each other, like two deer caught in the headlights.

"Are you okay?" He finally asked her.

She nodded, looking down.

Charlie ran his hand through his hair. "I wish you had let me know you were coming home. I wouldn't have taken a double shift." He went on when she didn't respond. "Are you sure you're okay? Maybe I can find someone to fill in for me later, and come home early."

"No, no, this actually works out well. I mean, Edward is going to come by later, so… " she trailed off.

"Oh. Okay. Well, you be sure and call me if you need me. Did uh, did Jacob drive you home?"

"Yeah. He just left. I'm going to go upstairs and put some sweats on."

"Okay," Charlie nodded. He shuffled uncomfortably. "I just want you to know that I'm not upset with you. Or disappointed in you. Marriage is a big decision, and if you're not ready for it, I'm just glad you figured it out now instead of 10 years down the line. Okay?"

"Okay, Dad," she nodded.

He headed for the front door, and stopped long enough to kiss her on the forehead.

"I'm sorry, Dad," she whispered.

"Don't be," he told her firmly, before he smiled and opened the door. "Wasn't my money wasted."

He hesitated before stepping outside. "You call me if you need me, you hear?"

"Okay," Bella told him, starting up the stairs.

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

Jacob came around the curve in the road before the Black's driveway and he could smell it.

_Bloodsucker!_

He slammed on the brakes, stopping the car before the Rabbit's backend was all the way off the roadway.

_Billy!_

He flung the car door open; the quivering in his body ready to explode. By the time he reached the front door, he was furry and on all fours. He burst through the door, completely knocking the whole thing off its hinges. A howl echoed through the empty house as he tried to call his father's name.

_Those sons of bitches! Those filthy bloodsucking leeches! _

Did they take his father? He'd kill them!

"Calm down, Jacob. Your father isn't here. Phase back and we'll… chat."

The wolf turned his massive head to see the leech sitting at the kitchen table, calmly tossing an apple back and forth between his hands.

The wolf let out a low growl, before Jacob stood before him, his hands grasping the top of a kitchen chair. The two of them stared each other down silently, before Jacob decided he should probably put some clothes on. Although, he made sure to let Edward get an eyeful of what his wife had enjoyed that morning.

He was happy to see Edward flinch before he looked away.

"I'll be right back," Jacob excused himself. "I'm just gonna throw some sweats on." He sauntered out of the room and pulled a pair of sweatpants from a drawer before heading back to the kitchen.

He didn't waste any time with niceties. "Where's my father?"

"He's having dinner with Sue Clearwater." Edward fashioned his fingers as if he was speaking into a cell phone. Jake watched in horror as he distorted his voice – Jake would have sworn in a court of law that it was Sue speaking. "I insist you come for dinner, Billy. I won't take no for an answer."

"Jesus Christ, you're a fucking freak," Jacob told him. "What do you want?"

Edward leaned back in his chair and folded his hands in his lap. "Oh, I think you know what I want."

"Yeah," Jake nodded. "Stupid question. But I don't think she wants you anymore." He couldn't help but flash an image of Bella's lips working their way down his body.

Edward's face collapsed, before he covered it with his hands, running them over his face. He seemed to collect himself, before looking up again. "That's just sex," he shrugged. "Do you honestly think you can keep her with just sex?"

"It's more than sex!" Jacob argued, hotly. "You don't even know her! She tries to tell you what she wants and you don't even listen!"

"Jacob," Edward seemed to regain some of his confidence. "All Bella ever claims to want in life, is me. Forever," he added.

"That's because she doesn't know who you really are. Remember that patient, understanding leech I talked to in that tent 3 months ago? The one that said whatever Bella wanted, he would step down and let her have it? I knew that was an act."

"I could afford to be more generous back then. I thought I knew where I stood; now I'm not so sure." He shrugged. "Bella's got cold feet, that's all. It's quite common in humans, I'm told."

"You really are clueless aren't you?" Jacob scowled at him. "She said she told you from the beginning she didn't want to marry you."

"But she wanted to be one of us, and be with me forever? That makes no sense. Marriage is certainly the lesser of the two evils."

Jacob shrugged. "It's Bella. What do you expect?"

Edward tried another tactic. "I know you're young, Jacob. But don't you have any respect for the sanctity of marriage?"

"When the groom is alive! You're a corpse! Technically, Bella is a widow! That's not a marriage. That's more like a funeral!"

Edward tossed the apple he'd been playing with back into the bowl on the table. "You are really trying my patience, Jacob." He folded his hands neatly on the table. "I really don't want to hurt you. Why don't you just be a good little boy and go find some nice little Quileute girl when you go back to school this fall, and attempt to play house with her?"

"Why don't you stick with your own kind and find a nice, cold leech, whose life has already been sucked out of her?"

Edward closed his eyes disdainfully. "I can see we're at an impasse." He drummed his fingers together under his chin. "What to do, what to do."

"I'll tell you what you can do. Go fuck yourself."

With vampire speed, Edward was on his feet and leaning across the table menacingly toward Jacob. "We can do this nicely, Jacob, or we can let it get ugly. I sincerely hoped we could do this nicely. But you are just not cooperating with me."

"Oh, do you want to _"compromise_" with me? Like you compromise with Bella? Bella is a little too naïve to realize that what you're really saying when you _compromise_ is, 'we'll do things _**my**_ way'. Well, Jacob Black don't play that way. You're gonna have to fight me for her."

"Jacob," Edward smiled patronizingly. "One on one between the two of us? Haven't you figured out yet who the winner would be?"

"We'll see, won't we?"

Edward started around the table, and then halted, shaking his head. "I'm not going to do this. I won't do that to Bella."

"Oh, please, don't do Bella any favors."

Jacob crouched, but Edward didn't respond.

"You afraid?" Jacob taunted.

"No, not afraid of you. I'm afraid that once I kill you and Bella finds out, she unfortunately won't see the benefit of it. It's not the way to win her back." He sat back down in the chair. "Unfortunately," he grinned at Jacob.

"So what do you plan to do?"

"I guess it's war," he told Jacob. He stood up and came around the table. "May the best man win." He put out his hand.

"Are you kidding me? That's it? We're not even going to fight?"

"I don't think either of us would benefit from it, Jacob. It would only count as a strike against us."

"Well hey, you're in my house. If I say you came after me and I killed you because you threatened me, I think that would work to my benefit a_ lot. _And I'd get the added pleasure of killing you."

"But you won't, because much as you hate to admit it, you know I'm right.

Jacob knocked Edward's hand away. "Well, I'm not shaking your hand. It will have to be a gentleman's agreement, on word alone."

"Okay," Edward smiled crookedly, pulling his hand away.

"And if you show up at my house again, sitting at my kitchen table, crying, when I win – I _**will **_have to kill you. Just so you know."

"Fair enough," Edward agreed.

Jacob was just about to add what he was going to do with Edward's body parts once he'd ripped him to pieces, but the bloodsucker was gone before he could open his mouth to speak.

"Crazy fucking leeches," Jacob muttered under his breath, shaking his head.

He looked at the kitchen door, hanging halfway into the kitchen, where he'd ripped it from its hinges. He muttered some more as he went to the kitchen drawer and looked for the hammer and screwdriver. He'd better fix that before Billy came home.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Bella reluctantly shuffled to her bedroom window. She'd stalled as long as she possibly could. She'd showered _again_, pored through recipe books looking for something complicated and time-consuming to make for dinner.

She'd then gone grocery shopping for all the ingredients, come home and proceeded to chop and dice and fry and simmer. She took her time with washing the pots and pans, the cutting board and counters. When she finally sat down to eat, alone, she couldn't taste a thing. She sealed everything up securely and put part of it in the fridge for Charlie to eat tomorrow, and froze the rest.

She couldn't stall anymore. It was dusk and starting to get dark outside when she trudged up the stairs slowly. She was still unsure what in the world she was going to say.

The lock slid open easily, and she eased the window all the way up. Her eyes scanned the trees to see if he was already there, but she saw nothing. She sat down on her bed, drawing her knees up under her chin, and waited.

He was standing before her almost immediately. She shook her head dazedly.

Had she forgotten how handsome he was? Her body buzzed and thrummed unbidden as she gazed up at him. One minute she'd been debating how to tell him she wanted an annulment, and the next he stood before her and the desire that oozed from her pores for him took her breath away.

"Bella, love," he smiled down at her. "I've missed you so much."

"Me too," she breathed, rising to her knees on the bed.

_Wait a minute_.

She'd been reluctant to face him all evening. Now she felt if he never left her side, it would be too soon. She fought an overwhelming need to touch him. She reached up and slid her palms up over his arms, the chill of his skin evident even through his shirtsleeves.

"Edward," she breathed. God, she wanted him. What was wrong with her? She was so sure she knew what she wanted this time. But she was so confused; all she felt was the strongest need to be with him, and hold him, touch him.

"Are you ready to come home with me now, Isabella?"

"Oh, yes. Edward, I'm so sorry. How can you ever forgive me? I love you."

"It's alright. Just come home with me, and we can forget all about the past few days. We're man and wife now, we can go away to school; get far away from here and never come back. And we'll be together, forever. Would you like that?" He softly stroked her cheek as he spoke soothingly to her.

"Oh, yes," she murmured. She leaned forward and buried her face in the crook of his neck. His scent along with the chill coming off his skin made goose bumps rise on her arms. "Kiss me."

"Gladly, Mrs. Cullen," he smiled at her, tilting his head and carefully planting his lips against hers.

The temperature of his frigid body against hers sent tingles down her spine.

Bella pulled her face away begrudgingly when she heard a scuffle from outside, below her window. There was the sound of snarling, and a scream pierced the air.

"Get your ugly face away from her, you scum-sucking leech! Bella get away from him!"

"Jacob? What are you doing here?" As she spoke the words, her senses came back to her, and she crossed the room to stand beside Jacob.

What the hell was wrong with her? She had actually been ready to leave with Edward. Go home with him, live with him. How could she?

"Are you alright?" Jacob asked her.

"Go home, Jacob. You're not needed here anymore. Bella is ready to come home with me. Where she belongs."

"You lying cheat! Tell her who you brought with you here."

Bella saw Edward's jaw clench, but he said nothing.

"Tell her or I will," Jacob growled.

"Tell me what? What are you talking about?"

"What were you going to do tonight, Bella?" Jacob reminded her. "What were you planning to tell Edward? That it was over, right? That you wanted an annulment. Remember?"

She nodded, confused.

"Then how did you feel when you saw him? Did you change your mind? Did you suddenly find the sack of shit desirable again?"

She cringed, and looked down at the ground, nodding imperceptively.

"How do you feel now, Bells?"

"Shut up Jacob and go home," Edward told him.

"No, you shut up. Tell her how devious you are! Tell her what you were doing!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Edward said, shrugging.

"Liar! I felt it as soon as I got close. He was manipulating her emotions! That's all you bloodsuckers are good for! Manipulating people to get what you want!" Jacob put his hand under Bella's chin, and lifted her eyes to him.

"Get your hands off her, mutt! How dare you touch my wife?"

Jacob tore his gaze from Bella long enough to send one zinger of a memory Edward's way. Edward literally cried out, as if he'd received a physical blow.

"Bella, look at me," Jacob pleaded. "I came to see if you needed me just now, and when I got within a few yards from your window, the strangest feeling came over me. I had been a little worried, not to mention a little pissed off all the way over here. But I hit the periphery of your property, and BAM! All of a sudden, I felt… this weird, yearning feeling of desire, or… love." He nodded his head. "You felt it too, didn't you? When Edward came into your room."

"I did!" she cried.

"Look at him now; do you still feel it?" Jacob asked her, turning her head gently in Edward's direction.

Edward's eyes were dark and earnest as watched her face.

"Do you?"

"No," she shook her head.

Edward's expression crumpled.

"Bella," Jake told her. "His sister and his brother – the one who can mess with people's feelings, were outside; under your window."

"What?"

Jacob nodded.

"Edward? Is that true? Did you bring Jasper here with you, to… to try to make me…? Why would you do that?" Bella asked him, disbelievingly.

"I didn't want to," Edward ran his hand through his perfectly manicured hair. "It was Alice's idea," he admitted. "I didn't want to do it, but I was desperate, Bella. She insisted that if I could just get you to come home with us, she'd see us all together again. She lost it, you know. She's lost you in our future." He stood up straighter. "And I would do anything to bring that back again."

"I just can't believe you would do that, Edward. That you would deceive me like that."

"I'm sorry, Bella."

"I think I need to be alone. I'm a little… overwhelmed," Bella told them both weakly. "Please, both of you. I need you both to leave."

She walked to the window and waited, covering her face with her hands. "Go."

A moment later, she heard a wolf's howl and opened her eyes. The room was empty. She closed the window and locked it, before collapsing on her bed and falling asleep in all her clothes almost instantly.

**XXXXXXXX**


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: Some of you expressed surprise at Edward's behavior in the last chapter, and to be honest, it surprised me as well. But as I've explained to a few of the readers, these are all traits that Edward manifested repeatedly in the books. He was manipulative and secretive, not to mention controlling and stalkerish. However, Stephenie Meyer used these traits in such as way as to show how "protective" Edward was of Bella. Edward has never had to fight for Bella's affections and his back is up against the wall. I do not find it far-fetched nor taken out of left field to imagine the flip side of these same traits that he possesses, used to fight to get her back. The whole premise of the first book was Edward fighting his most basic instincts not to kill Bella. That's not to say that he is evil, because I don't believe that either. I am just taking a few of his well-known attributes and showing how a character can react not always in the most noble or gentlemanly of ways when they are desperate._

_**Previous chapter**__: Jacob and Bella come home together. Upon arriving in La Push, Jacob finds Edward at his house, where Edward tells Jacob that he wants Bella back, and is prepared to fight him for her. Later, Bella and Edward meet in her room to talk that night, but Edward brings Jasper and Alice with him, where they hide under Bella's window, and Jasper exerts feelings of love and desire over Bella, so she will go home to the Cullen's with Edward. Jacob arrives just in time, and breaks the spell._

**Chapter Eleven**

Bella tossed and turned, maneuvering her pillow again. Try as she might, she just could not get to sleep. The thought that if Jacob had not turned up when he did, she might be lying in the wooden canopied bed in Edward's bedroom right now, unsettled her.

How long would Jasper have wielded his emotional love spell over her? Until she was so entrenched, she couldn't get away? Until she had "tried" with Edward, in the hopes that Jacob wouldn't take her back after that? The fact that Edward could be so deceitful made her heart ache with disappointment.

Edward had always managed to wrangle his own way with Bella, but she'd always thought it was because she was such a push-over where he was concerned; not because she was actually being coerced or manipulated.

_Manipulate._

That word kept coming up in her conversations with Jacob concerning Edward, and now she couldn't shake it loose. It fit right into the center of the puzzle of her life over the last year; completing the picture and making the small details so obviously come together.

She huffed and rolled onto her back.

_Jacob._

She missed him already. Maybe she'd been hasty in sending him away earlier. She moved her hand underneath her pajama camisole, and smoothed her fingers across her stomach. It wasn't quite the same as when he did it. For one thing, her hands were too cold. And too small; his hands encompassed a much larger area.

She huffed again and pulled her hand away. Maybe she could call him? No, she wanted to do more than talk to him.

She smiled in the dark as she recalled stealing his clothes from the hotel bathroom the night before. It had worked brilliantly. Bella Swan _could_ successfully seduce when she put her mind to it.

From stealing his clothes…

To him standing before her in just a towel…

To the kiss…

To the bed…

To the…

She sat up. She was going to La Push!

No, she laid back down. That was crazy. She couldn't just show up at his house in the middle of the night. She didn't even know if he was there; he was probably running patrols. Sam was probably slave driving him to make up for taking off for 2 days with her.

So what? She'd take her chances; she was going.

No, with her luck, Jacob wouldn't be there, and Billy would catch her.

She lay there for half an hour going back and forth. She was going; she wasn't going.

With a final glance at the clock, 1:30 am, she got up and grabbed her cell phone and got back in bed with it.

R u home? R u awake? She texted and waited for a reply.

Been home about 10 minutes am eating a sandwich. Whats up?

Want some company?

R u kidding? Of course!

c u in about 20 mins!

She kicked off her covers and slipped her rain jacket and some slippers on. It was drizzly outside, but still warm. She grabbed her keys off the dresser and tiptoed past Charlie's room and out the front door.

She cringed as she approached the garage. She missed her truck; her new car, that Edward _**insisted**_ on buying her, she kept holed up in the garage. It was an embarrassment and an eyesore. Well, she wouldn't have to worry about it for much longer; she'd be giving it back along with her ring.

She opened the garage door as quietly as she could and opened the military tank's door before sliding into the front seat. At least the engine in this purred quietly when started, unlike the truck. She still turned the key in the ignition carefully, as if that would mute any sound as it started.

There was nothing. Just the the click of the key turning, and then silence. The tank was dead.

Dammit!

That couldn't be! The Guardian was only a few weeks old. She may have been horrifically embarrassed being seen driving it, and she may have resented its luxurious sleekness and its ridiculous protective accoutrements, but the car ran like a dream. What the heck?

She turned the key again. Nothing. She frowned as a thought niggled at her belly.

Her truck had pulled this once, and it hadn't been the truck's fault. Someone had pulled the wires.

She looked around, expecting Edward to pop out of nowhere. If the situation that took place at the house earlier with Jasper hadn't occurred, she would have never in a million years suspected Edward could have something to do with her car dying. But now…

_Damn him!_ She didn't like doubting what Edward was capable of. Of course it would be in his best interests to keep her away from Jacob. Hadn't that been his intention since last spring when they'd come home from Italy? He'd always claimed it was for her safety; that the wolves were dangerous. She'd known that wasn't true then, and she knew it now.

She shook her head and headed back to the house. She was going to believe that it was a loose wire, or a faulty battery, until proven otherwise. She would at least have the decency to believe that Edward was innocent until proven guilty.

She got back under the covers, which had cooled since she'd left the bed less than 10 minutes ago.

Sorry. My car won't start. I can't come over.

What? U got me all excited. Open ur window-Im coming 2 u!

Yay! C u soon!

She put her cell on the nightstand and jumped up, opening her window and locking her bedroom door. She snuggled underneath the covers, grinning like a loon.

Fifteen minutes later, she opened her eyes with the feeling that someone was staring at her. She jumped when she saw Jacob's smiling face and hulking form standing over her.

"God! You scared me! Couldn't you have made a _little _noise, so I'd know you were here?"

"Sorry." He knelt beside the bed. "So what's wrong with the truck?"

"Um… I don't have the truck anymore, Jake. It died."

For some stupid reason, saying that sentence out loud to Jacob brought tears to her eyes. As if they were talking about a mutual friend who had passed away unexpectedly.

"The truck died?"

He was quiet. There was an ironic moment of silence for their departed friend, before Jacob asked her another question. "So what are you driving?"

She took a deep breath, feeling stupid at her answer. "Edward bought me a Mercedes."

She couldn't force out the model, she was too embarrassed. She knew if anyone would appreciate the ridiculousness of what he'd forced her to drive, Jacob would.

"A Mercedes. Huh, of course. A Mercedes, what?"

"Mmm," she stalled. "A uh, a Mercedes Guardian."

"Get the fuck out of here!" he exclaimed a little too loudly.

"Shh, keep it down."

"Edward bought you a Mercedes Guardian? Those aren't even available in Europe yet, let alone the United States. How the hell did he manage that?" He shook his head in annoyance and disgust as he realized that whatever the Cullens wanted, the Cullens managed to get.

"I don't know. But anyway, it wouldn't start. Like the battery was dead or something. I turned the key and nothing happened."

Even as he was wrapping his head around the idea of Edward acquiring a Guardian, and Bella driving one, she knew he was thinking the same thing she had thought earlier. Why would a bazillion dollar luxury car not start?

"Where's the key? I want to look at it."

"Not now, Jake. Can't you look in the morning?"

"I just want to check something."

That bad feeling niggled at her stomach again. She knew what he really wanted to do was sniff around the hood, not look under it at 2 in the morning.

He grabbed her keys off the desk before he shimmied out the window and dropped to the ground below. There was silence and then a few minutes later, he hopped back in and tossed her keys back on her desk.

He leaned against her dresser. "Wow. Well it starts now, are you sure you know how to drive that thing, Bells?"

She glared at him in the dark. "I certainly know how to turn a key in an ignition, Jacob. And yes, I _can_ and _have_ driven it.

He put his hands up defensively. "Sorry, but it started like a kitten for me. Don't get mad at me, but this reeks of eau de vampire."

"No! Are you sure, Jake? You smelled him?"

"No," he admitted. "I meant metaphorically, it smells like vampire." He shook his head. "I didn't see or smell anything."

Bella sighed, relieved. She was afraid she'd never trust Edward again. And that hurt her. There would always be that miniscule thread of doubt that weaved through her conscience.

"Metaphorically?" she grinned. "Do you know what those big words mean?" she teased.

"I know plenty." He sat down on the side of her bed. "So what spurred on your sudden need to see me in the middle of the night?"

She shrugged her shoulders under the covers, embarrassed. "I was just… thinking about you."

"Thinking about me naked?"

"Jacob!" she squealed, laughing.

"I've been thinking about _you_ naked all the way over here."

She sighed and thread her arms around his shoulders as he bent over and kissed her. "Is there room for me in this tiny bed?" he breathed, kissing her earlobe.

"Mm-hmm," she scooted aside so he could lie beside her. She arched her head back as he lazily moved his warm mouth along her throat. She opened her eyes briefly and her hands tightened over his shoulders. "Jake, could you shut the window, please?"

Jacob rolled off the bed, scanning the trees and the outside area subtly. He listened and sniffed the damp, humid air, using all his senses, before completely closing the window shut and pulling the blinds down.

"So I guess you're not mad at me," he said, climbing back onto the bed and laying beside her.

"I was never mad at you."

"Then why did you send me away earlier?"

She shook her head. "I was just… I felt violated after what happened. It freaked me out, Jake. I wasn't mad at you. It was the creepiest thing to feel one way and then to have someone take that away from you and make you feel another. It was awful!"

"I know. That's messed up. He told me he was going to fight me for you. I told him – "

"Wait! What? When did he tell you that?"

"I didn't get a chance to tell you before, but after I dropped you off here, he was sitting in my kitchen, waiting for me."

"Edward," she stated, dumb-founded. "Edward was sitting in your kitchen? Doesn't that violate the treaty? How did he get through the pack?"

"I think Sam gave him a special dispensation yesterday, when he didn't know where we were. But just him. He could come alone, but none of the others could be with him." Jacob shrugged. "I guess Sam figured it was the least we could do. You know, the native ran off with the white woman, and all that," he joked.

"Well, I'll give Edward a piece of my mind when I see him next time."

Jacob threw her a dark look. "I don't want you to see him."

"Excuse me? Now you sound like him. Don't tell me what I can and can't do, Jacob. I have to see him. There's this little matter of a marriage we have to annul."

"Bella, I don't want you alone with him. I'm serious. Who knows what he's capable of? He had his sister kidnap you once, merely to keep you away from me, and we were just friends then. They put you under house arrest for having a _friend_."

Jacob took a deep breath, to stop the tremors running down his arms. "He wants you back. He told me it's war. And the shit he pulled earlier tonight? No way. I'll tell your father."

"You'll tell on me?" she hissed indignantly. "What are you going to tell my father? About the vampires? About the werewolves? Are you gonna tattletale and tell him I was going to have sex on my wedding night, too? Oh wait, _that_ he probably expected."

Jacob made a face. "No, I'm not going to tell him about the wolves and the leeches. I'll just tell him that Edward threatened me, and that I don't trust him. You know he'll back me up, Bells. Cullen isn't one of Charlie's favorite people."

"Jacob. I _have_ to see Edward. How am I supposed to end my marriage with him otherwise?"

"Do it over the phone. Send him smoke signals, I don't know. But you're not going to see him again."

"Okay, I wasn't mad at you earlier, but now you're kinda ticking me off."

Jacob ran his hand through his hair. "How about Charlie or I have to be there with you if you have to see him face to face?"

She thought a minute; that seemed fair. "Alright."

"Good. I'm glad we got that covered." He leaned over her, brushing her hair out of her eyes. "Now, about why you wanted to see me tonight… "

He leaned down and brushed his lips over hers.

"You don't really think Edward disabled my car earlier, do you?"

Jacob's shoulders sagged and he sighed. He'd thought they were done talking. "I don't know, Bella. Didn't you say he did it once before to the truck? But in fairness, I didn't see or smell anything out there. Maybe it was just a loose wire, and it fell back into place by the time I got here and tried it myself."

He didn't really believe that, but right now he was past talking about the car and was ready to move onto other things.

"Maybe," she murmured, unsure. These circumstances were similar to the first time Edward had stopped her from going to La Push, though. She'd debated and gone back and forth in her mind about driving to Jacob's – it would have been plenty of time for Alice to see it and tell Edward.

She tried to shake the nagging thoughts away.

"You're brave, inviting me over when Charlie is home. You must have really missed me," he whispered, his lips on her neck.

"I really did." She reached for the button on his shorts, and for a little while, she forgot all about Edward and the rest of his family.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Her feet made no sound as they glided over the stone pathway. She silently crept closer to the glass wall enclosing the cottage's white-blue hued bedroom. She watched for them in the darkened room as she made her way around the small, round pond, her glistening blonde hair catching in a thorn from the climbing rose bushes that encircled it.

She knew it was just a matter of time before the two of them would end up here. She could hear them murmuring to each other, but they spoke so softly, even _she_ couldn't make out the words. She wasn't surprised; he would never want anyone to know that he had brought _her_ here. It most assuredly was meant to be a well-guarded secret.

Rosalie watched them from the security of the flowered trellis. They were so caught up in their encounter; they were impervious to anything else around them.

At least the new cottage was getting some use. All of Esme's hard work and artistry in designing the place as a wedding gift would be for naught now. For some reason it tickled Rose that it was a clandestine meeting taking place inside, instead of the first night of eternity for the new bride and groom, as it was meant to be.

The moonlight glistened through the windowed room, catching the strawberry highlights in the girl's hair. Her hands gesticulated as if she were trying to convince him of something. Her eyes glowed golden with intensity.

While her expression and body language were heated, his was much more low-key. The girl stood beside him as he sat like a man of as many years as he was chronologically; stooped, bent and defeated.

Rosalie could have predicted all this months ago; had, in fact laid it out in so many words. But he had refused to listen to her. And now…

_It was fun to be right_, she thought.

The redhead reached for the man's chin, forcing him to look her in the eyes. She ran her hand through his bronze hair and Rosalie watched as she bent before him and kissed him.

The man didn't seem to react with much ardor, but he didn't protest either. The woman pushed him back against the sofa; straddling him. She made all the moves, as if she were re-enacting a well-choreographed dance, and he was her reluctant partner.

Rosalie didn't need to see the details. She made her way back to the big house with a pleased smile on her flawless face. As she neared the trees, she heard his last words before he submitted.

_This doesn't mean anything, Tanya…_

**XXXXXXXXX**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

Edward braced himself; he heard Alice coming all the way from the other side of the house. Heard her thoughts, that is. She was ranting at him inside her head, calling him all kinds of foul names that Edward didn't even think Alice knew.

"You idiot! How could you?" She flew delicately around the corner from the hallway into the music room, where Edward was sitting at the piano.

The heavy velvet drapes were drawn, casting the already dark room in shadows. The sun shining outside not only irritated him, he didn't need to be reminded of his sparkling status, but the nice weather wasn't conducive to his mood and what he was trying to accomplish.

He'd been trying to compose another lullaby for Bella, but his mind had been so muddled lately, he couldn't get beyond the first four notes.

He didn't bother to cast a glance Alice's way, just continued to run his cool, pale fingers over the keys.

"How did you find out?" The answer to his question popped into her head, where he plucked it from her effortlessly. "Ah, Rosalie. Why am I not surprised?"

"Don't blame Rose. She didn't tell me."

"Then how did you find out?" He played some Braham's to soothe himself and hopefully to inspire him as well.

Alice's lips tightened. "The Cullen express. Rosalie told Emmett in confidence, who – "

Edward cut her off. "Who then told Jasper, who then told you."

It wasn't the first time; this was the way news usually trickled through the house, with Carlisle and Esme always being the last to know.

"But that doesn't matter Edward. What were you _**thinking?**_"

"Don't worry about it. It's really none of your business, Alice."

"But I'm trying to help you! And sleeping with Tanya is not the way to get your wife back."

Alice jumped as Edward slammed both his hands against the keys and the piano blared with a loud protest.

"Sorry," Edward apologized, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Tanya has been very helpful to me. I've been very forthcoming with her, and while what we did was unethical, ultimately, I feel more confident that I can give Bella what she wants now."

"What? Jacob Black?"

"Very funny," Edward glared at her. "You and I both know the only reason she's run to Jacob is… "

"For sex," Alice finished for him. "God Edward, you can't even say it."

"Bella has been begging me to… " He hesitated again, uncomfortable.

Alice shook her head, her eyes wide. "To?"

"To be intimate with her. I'm afraid, Alice; what if I hurt her? What if I lost control? God, I'd never forgive myself. But she wouldn't let up. No matter how many times I explained to her that it was for her own good, she just kept asking for it."

"You sound like a cheap porn movie," Alice giggled. Edward's look of disdain forced her to wipe the smile from her face. "Sorry, go on."

"I finally made a compromise with her. If she would marry me, I would… try. Against my better judgment."

"I never saw that." Alice perched on the edge of the piano bench beside Edward.

"What _did_ you see?"

"I didn't see much," she admitted. "I briefly got a flicker of poor Bella trying to seduce you, and not succeeding. That's why I packed a lot of lingerie in her luggage. But wait a minute. What does this have to do with you sleeping with Tanya?"

"Well, when I explained all this to her, she made the point that I had no idea what sex was like, so she understood why I was reluctant to put Bella in that kind of danger. She said that if I had experienced sex, and knew what to expect, she didn't see how it would be too much for me to handle. If I knew what to expect, I could pace myself, so to speak, and come up with some coping mechanisms."

Alice put her head down to hide her smirk. Her brother was gullible. Tanya could talk a footless man into buying a pair of shoes.

"I know now, I can handle sex with Bella. And I will get her back." He turned to look at Alice confidently. "I can do this. Jacob Black is toast."

"Are you sure you can… do it, as well as the dog?"

Edward's eyes narrowed angrily.

"I just mean," she sputtered. "I mean, he's part animal, Edward; and an Alpha, too."

"I saw what Jacob did!" He yelled; the memory of Jacob throwing him the scraps of his and Bella's lovemaking still fresh in his mind. "Trust me; he made sure I got all the dirty, oral, pounding details!"

"It's okay," Alice stroked her brother's cold, solid shoulder soothingly. "Bella loves you."

Alice hoped she sounded more convincing than she felt.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They sat at the kitchen table, a heaping plate of scrambled eggs and turkey bacon between them. Bella had made it mostly for Jacob, but she picked at the eggs.

"Ya know what we haven't done in a long time that I'd like to do again?"

"Well, it hasn't been that long, only an hour or so – but, have sex?"

"No," she giggled, swatting him. "I meant, ride the bikes. Do you still have mine?"

"Yeah," he sighed. "I tried to get rid of it, but I couldn't."

As a matter of fact, his plan had been to ditch it as soon as she was officially married. That was the end; the fat lady singing, the door closing on their relationship, was her getting married. How ironic that instead of it signifying the end, like he'd imagined, it had become their true beginning.

"We could do that if you want," he agreed. "The weather is perfect for riding. The paths should be semi-dried up too, so it won't be so muddy."

"Okay," she smiled, excited. She'd missed riding with Jacob. The speed, the exhilaration, the wind in her hair. "Let me clean this stuff up, and we can go."

She brought the plates and utensils to the sink, while Jacob put the butter away, and wrapped up the loaf of bread, before placing it back in the cupboard. Bella went back to the table and grabbed both their glasses. She carried them to the sink.

Her foot caught on the edge of the floor mat, just underneath the sink. She stumbled, and the glass in her left hand slid out of her grasp, falling toward the porcelain basin. Bella clumsily tried to grab it before gravity pulled it toward its inevitable shattering crash, but it was too late. She hastily tried to clutch the cup firmly, and instead grabbed a broken hunk of glass.

"Ow!"

She pulled the large piece from her palm as the blood flowed red against the white porcelain. Her head instantly felt light and her stomach clenched in nausea, as the metallic smell assailed her nostrils.

"Bells! Are you alright?" His arm slid around her waist, helping to keep her upright.

"I'm okay, I'm okay," she spoke, trying to breathe exclusively through her mouth. Her knees went weak, and Jacob lifted her up onto the counter. He took her hand and tried to examine it through all the blood flowing from the gash on the mound beside her thumb. He couldn't see any small shards there, so he turned the cold water on lightly and held her hand underneath it, rinsing away the blood.

He pulled his shirt off and attempted to wrap her hand with it.

"Stop! Don't ruin your shirt!" she shrieked at him. "Grab the dish towel on the refrigerator door, and use that."

Jacob turned toward the fridge and snatched the dish towel from the door's handle and put it around her hand, holding it in place with pressure against the gash.

"You're gonna need stitches, Bells."

"What else is new?" she sighed. Some things never changed.

"I ran here last night, so I don't have the Rabbit." She could see he was fighting a grin. "So I guess I'll have to drive you in your new car."

She rolled her eyes. "Go get the keys. And put your shirt back on," she yelled as he practically skipped toward her room for the keys.

Jacob pulled the car into the Emergency parking lot. Bella hadn't known the Guardian was capable of going quite that fast. Jacob was under the impression that since there was blood, any police officer who happened to pull them over, would have to let them go, because of that. She'd clutched the door handle with her good hand the whole way to the hospital. What was it with boys and fast cars?

There was blood staining the dish towel, but it wasn't like it was seeping through or anything, so obviously the flow was stanching.

Jacob walked with her to the nurse's desk, and Bella shut her eyes and bit off the groan that threatened to emerge. She knew this nurse well. With all the trips here that Bella had made since she'd moved back to Forks, the nurses had gotten to recognize her face. But now there was another reason for them to greet her so familiarly.

"Bella Swan!" The nurse exclaimed when she looked up. "Oops, or should I say Bella Cullen?" She winked, and Bella tried her hardest not to grimace. "We haven't seen you in here for at least a month! Marriage must agree with you."

Bella smiled weakly at her.

"But what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be on your honeymoon with that new husband of yours?" Luckily the woman didn't expect Bella to answer. As she started to stammer, the nurse went on. "And you're in luck. Dr Cullen is in today too. Who better to take care of you than your new father-in-law?"

Thankfully, a little girl in the middle of the waiting room moaned, just before throwing up all over the scuffed linoleum floor. The nurse handed Bella some paperwork to fill out and began to bark orders at the orderlies about cleaning up the mess.

Bella gratefully took a seat on the opposite side of the room from the vomiting girl and filled out the paperwork with her good hand.

"Sorry," she whispered to Jacob. That couldn't have been easy for him to hear.

"Not your fault," he murmured back, rubbing the back of her neck soothingly.

Someone must have told Carlisle that his daughter-in-law was in the waiting room, because she was bombarded with dirty looks from the other patients who had been waiting much longer than she had, when they called her into a back room.

"Do you want me to come?" Jacob asked her before she stood up. She hesitated before quickly nodding her head.

Jacob could smell the vampire stench as soon as they walked through the door. It permeated the whole back area, thick and sickly sweet. With the underlying odor of urine and sick people, Jacob quickly opted for mouth breathing. It didn't help much.

The nurse looked at Bella's hand, wincing at the cut, and replaced the dish towel with a heavy gauze bandage. She took her blood pressure and told them the doctor would be right with them, before leaving the room.

"Well, so much for riding," Jacob quipped. "You didn't even make it out of the kitchen before you injured yourself. You usually at least make it out the door."

"Haha."

She was nervous and not in the mood to make conversation. But Jacob was quite content to chatter on.

"I haven't seen Dr. Fang since after the newborn fight. Maybe he'll want to take a look at me. Make sure all my injuries have properly healed. Although, on second thought, keep him away from me, he may take the opportunity to decide to re-break a few things," he joked.

Jacob walked over to the small table that had cotton balls, and what looked like long q-tips, in glass jars, on top.

"Jacob, don't play with that stuff," she chastised him.

"Hey Bells, what am I?" He'd taken two tongue depressors and stuck them under his top lip, so they hung down out of his mouth like overgrown incisors.

Just then, there was a soft knock on the door, and Carlisle came into the room.

"Well, hello, Bella," he greeted her, before giving Jacob a weak grin.

"Bet you didn't expect to see me here, did ya, Doc?" Jacob said, pulling the tongue depressors out of his mouth.

"On the contrary, Jacob, I uh, I picked up on your… scent in the other room, when I was with my last patient."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Jacob muttered.

Carlisle turned his attention to Bella. "So, what seems to be the trouble today, Bella?"

She held up her hand with the blood-tinged gauze held to it. "I cut my hand on some glass. I think it needs stitches."

She could barely peel her eyes from the floor, and look at Carlisle. What must he think of her? Maybe she shouldn't have had Jacob come in with her. This had to be making Dr. Cullen uncomfortable; although he didn't seem to be. His demeanor spoke of the same patient, caring, man he always was. Bella assumed he must always be in doctor mode.

"Let me see," he gently took her hand in his cold fingers and moved the gauze away. Bella got a chill as she felt the familiar hard, frigid vampire skin.

"Yes, it looks like you're going to need about 4 stitches for this." He smiled gently at her. "You remember how this goes, right? We've done this before."

She nodded, a small smile sneaking past her lips. Of course she remembered. How could she forget? She'd let the details of that horrible day go, once Edward had returned with her from Italy. But the fact that his brother had tried to kill her, was something she could never completely forget.

"Let me get a few things, and I'll be right back to take care of this for you. Excuse me." Carlisle left the room to get what he needed to stitch her hand.

"Jake?" She asked him, once the doctor had left.

"Yeah?"

"Would you mind terribly if I asked you to wait in the waiting room?"

He hesitated. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I need to say a few things to Carlisle, and I… I just feel it would be disrespectful to address this to him, in front of other people."

"Especially the dude that whisked you away from his son at his own wedding, you mean?"

"Yeah, kind of."

Jacob nodded and started for the door.

"Thank you for understanding, Jake. And thank you for coming with me." She reached out and grabbed his hand with her good one, and gave it a squeeze. "I love you."

"I know," he squeezed her hand back and went outside to wait for her.

Bella stared bleakly at the picture on the opposite wall of a human heart with a diagram of all the major chambers and blood vessels. What could she possibly say that could take away the sting of what she'd done?

"Okay, this will just take a few minutes, Bella, and you'll be as good as new. Did Jacob leave?" Carlisle asked, glancing around the room.

"Ye-yes," Bella stammered. "I asked him to leave, so I… so I could apologize to you."

She took a deep breath and forced the words out before she lost her nerve. "I'm so sorry for what I put you and your family through, Carlisle. I can never re-pay you all for your patience and your kindness. I know it's not enough, but please, I hope you'll accept my apology."

Carlisle looked up at Bella, after swabbing some alcohol around the injured area. "You don't have to apologize to me, Bella. I know Edward is hurt, and I know he loves you. But more than anything, all any of us ever wanted for you was to be happy. You weren't merely accepting a marriage proposal, you were taking on so much more. It was not something that any of us took lightly, and you don't have to be sorry for changing your mind about something like that."

"Thank you," she whispered. She shook her head. "I could have done things differently though. I _should_ have done things differently. I really – "

"It doesn't matter now, Bella. No one else could make this choice for you. The stress of such a decision and its ramifications would of course affect the way you would react. My only regret is that you and Edward both seemed to have been hurt by all this. It was a lot to ask of anyone, and you couldn't go through with it. To be honest with you, I'm rather glad. This is not an easy existence. You're very young; I don't think there's any way you could fully understand all that you would be giving up."

"Yes," she nodded. "That's just it. I did realize all that I would be giving up." She studied his beautiful, pale skin and golden eyes earnestly. "Please know that I truly do love all of you. And I appreciate everything that you have all done for me."

"As do we," he murmured reassuringly, as he worked the needle skillfully through her flesh. She didn't feel anything but slight pressure and some tugging. "We placed a lot of danger in your life. Not many humans could have survived that without cracking, or without giving up our secret. So we thank you, and apologize, likewise."

He taped a fresh bandage over the stitched wound. "There. Keep this dry, and you don't have to come back. The thread will disintegrate on its own." He patted her hand. "You can take some ibuprofen for the pain, if you need it."

"I think I'm going to need more than ibuprofen," she joked wryly.

Carlisle chuckled, before turning serious. "I'm not sure if you and Edward have discussed this yet; I don't even want to assume what it is that the two of you are going to do about the… situation. But don't forget that we have people who can take care of this; people we employ to handle our legal and monetary issues. They are the best at what they do. Don't hesitate to use them. _**If**_ that's what the two of you decide to do," he added.

Carlisle took her two hands between his gently and kissed the top of her head affectionately. "Take care, Bella."

She had no sooner murmured, "Thank you," than Dr. Cullen was gone.

XXXXXXXXX


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Sorry it took me so long to get this chapter out. My muse was on vacation. Or maybe I should say, she was on a one-shot sabbatical. My attention was diverted – to a few contests going on out there. I want to give a shout-out and quick thank-you to all of you who voted for me in the JBNP 'Show the Love' Valentine's Day contest. You rock!

Also, I want to give a special thank you to light4dawn , who helped me figure out a way out of the writer's block I'd developed while writing Sweet Hostage. This is her ending, in my own words. To read some of her incredible stories, take the link above to her Live Journal page. Her newest WIP is entitled Every Rose Has its Thorn . Go give it a read.

**Chapter Thirteen**

"Mmm, Jake? It's getting dark. I need to – mmm." She moaned, as his warm hand eased up under her shirt. "I've got to start dinner, Jacob. Ow!" She reached for his hand, sending a shockwave of pain shooting through her palm when she gripped him a little too tightly. She kept forgetting about her stitches.

"You okay? Just a few more minutes, honey." He left burning kisses across her jaw line and down to her throat. She felt his fingers, like sneaky little spider's legs crawling across her stomach.

"Charlie is going to be home soon." She protested half-heartedly, allowing his naughty digits to creep higher, delicately palming her breast and squeezing her nipple between two fingers. "Oh, the hell with it," she mumbled, reaching for his shirt and yanking it over his head.

He eased her down onto the couch, lining their bellies up: cool bare skin pressed tight against his scorching heat.

Bella made a whining noise in her throat when Jacob sat up abruptly. "Someone is coming."

"Huh? What?" She pulled her shirt back down, as Jacob picked his up off the sofa's armrest and eased it over his head. He made his way to the window.

"I heard a car. Someone is here."

The room was getting dark as night fell. Bella glanced at her watch; it was still too early for Charlie. He shouldn't be home for at least another 45 minutes. She followed Jake to the window, and he pulled the beige curtains slightly apart to peek out to the street in front.

"Holy shit," he whistled under his breath.

"What?" She jostled for peek space and tried to adjust her eyesight to make out the car that had just pulled up across the road from the house. Bella didn't know cars like Jacob did, but a sleek silver convertible was parked across the street.

"That's a Jaguar xkr," Jacob murmured reverently.

They watched together as a good-looking young man got out of the car and headed toward the Swan residence. His sandy blonde hair was almost to his shoulders. As he approached the house, the security lights flicked on. The man's gaze went to the window, and Bella and Jacob both stepped back, letting the curtains fall back into place.

Bella went to the door, anticipating the man's knock. As her hand reached for the doorknob, Jacob grabbed her arm and hauled her back, putting himself in front of her.

"I smell vampire!" he hissed. "Get back!" He grabbed the knob and flung the door open, causing the man now standing on the front stoop, with his fist poised to knock, to jump and startle back.

Bella could see in the porch light that the man was deeply tanned, his skin a rich golden brown, making his blue eyes appear an almost bright turquoise in their intensity. He couldn't be a vampire…

The man wore a pair of tan khakis and a bluish-green collared polo shirt that matched his eyes.

She gasped when Jake reached out and touched the man's bare arm.

"You're not… "

"No, I'm not," the man smiled knowingly, shaking his head. He looked past Jake, to Bella standing in the foyer, ten feet from the front door, where Jacob had thrown her back. "Bella Swan?"

Bella looked questioningly at Jacob.

"He's not a bloodsucker. But he smells like one."

"My mistress is a…" His lips curled up into an amused smile. "A bloodsucker."

"Your mistress?" Bella asked him.

"Are you Isabella Swan?" he asked her again.

"Yes." She nodded as Jacob scoped the area, studying the trees in the distance.

She came cautiously toward the door.

"He's alone," Jacob murmured softly into her ear.

"This is for you," the young man told her. He held out a single pale-gray envelope.

She tentatively reached for it and saw her name was emblazoned on the front, in a fancy, sweeping calligraphic pen. She didn't recognize the writing.

**Isabella Swan**

"Is that it?" Jacob asked the man abruptly. "What are you waiting for? A tip?"

The man's eyes narrowed slightly at Jacob's tone, but the smooth smile stayed glued on his lips. "Just that, and a direct message from my mistress." He held up three fingers, and stated slowly and succinctly. "Be. Very. Careful."

"Who the hell is your mistress?" Jacob growled at him. But the man had already turned and was making his way down the front steps and back to his car. "Hey!" Jake called after him. "Who the hell is your mistress?"

"Jake," Bella pulled him inside, before shutting the door and locking the deadbolt forcefully.

"What the hell was that about?"

"I have no idea," she murmured, staring at the envelope in her hand.

"Open it," he said, drawing closer.

She flipped the envelope over, and found it was closed, with a burgundy wax seal, the initials TD melted into the enclosure.

"Tanya." She said the name aloud. She ripped the envelope open, and pulled out a parchment of charcoal gray, with the same scrawling hand as on the front of the letter.

**If you wish to maintain your current happiness, it is imperative that you meet with me. I think the two of us can help one another. Tomorrow, at 10 pm. I will come to you. Be Alone. That means no mutts breathing over our shoulders. Tanya **

There was a phone number beneath her signature, most likely her cell.

"No way!" He exclaimed, reading over her shoulder. "There is no way in hell that bloodsucking ho is coming here tomorrow night to meet with you, alone!"

His body was trembling, his arms bulging convulsively through his shirt, stretching the already taut material spastically.

"Jake, calm down."

"There's a phone number. Tell her I'm there with you, or it's not happening. I don't trust that leech as far as I could throw her cold marble ass."

"Jacob, would you just relax, please? I think she's on our side. She wants Edward. I don't think this is a trick."

"Then why do you have to be alone? She knows how naïve you are, honey. I'm sorry, but you are." He apologized when she shot him a dirty look. "You're too trusting. She's up to something. Even if she wants the same thing we do, she's going behind Edward's back to meet you. Either way you cut it, she's back-stabbing somebody. Let her think you're not sure that you're ready to give him up."

"You know that's not true!" Bella quickly protested.

"I know it's not true," Jacob said, softening. He swept a lock of her hair behind her ear. "But let her think that it is. It gives you an edge. Just until we hear what she wants. Don't let her come in here making demands. You let her know what's what, not the other way around."

"What if she won't agree to meet with you here?"

"Then maybe she'll agree to another member of the pack."

"At least if one of the guys was here, Alice couldn't see it. So, I could tell her it's for her own protection."

"Good girl, that's a great point. Let her think you're looking out for her best interests."

Bella stared at the letter silently, lost in thought. "What if Edward's set this up? What if she wants to convince me to go back to him?" she murmured.

"Then you tell her to go to hell." Jacob told her calmly, kissing her on the forehead. "Don't let her intimidate you. You're in the driver's seat and she knows it. If you wanted to go back, she knows Edward would arrange it in a New York minute and he would book her a flight back to Alaska so fast, her head would spin. You just remember that."

Bella nodded, not so confident that she had the upper hand. Her stomach knotted with butterflies. Tanya Denali had always made Bella nervous. And vampires had always made Bella feel inferior. It wasn't a good mix.

XXXXXXXX

After a brief chat with Tanya that night, she reluctantly agreed that Bella was right – a wolf there would shield their meeting from Alice. Bella had no idea how Tanya planned to keep Edward out of her head, so he wouldn't find out. But that was _her_ problem. Thank the lord that Edward had never been able to read _her_ own thoughts. That would have gotten old really fast.

Tanya was adamant that Jacob not be there. She said she wanted Bella to be able to speak freely, and for some reason she felt that Jacob's presence would sway Bella's stance. She insisted she wanted Bella to be able to speak frankly and not have to worry about Jacob's feelings or opinions in the matter at hand.

Bella suggested Seth be present. Tanya not only remembered meeting Seth at the wedding, but Edward had talked about Seth, and his acceptance of the vampires. Seth's easy-going nature and genuine fondness for Edward and the Cullen's made him an acceptable chaperone in Tanya's eyes.

So it was agreed. Bella would meet with Tanya the next night, with Seth in tow.

XXXXXXXX

The passenger door on the Guardian flew open unexpectedly, causing Bella to gasp in surprise.

"Who let the dog in?" Tanya exclaimed, fanning her hand and making a face. She stayed put, standing outside the open door.

"I know the dog has to be here," she said, peering in at Seth. "But must he sit right in the backseat? Are we going to roll the windows down, so he can stick his head outside and pretend we're going for a ride?"

Bella gazed back at Seth apologetically. He ducked his head, embarrassed.

"It's okay, Bella. She's right. It's a little cramped in here for both our noses. I'll just stand right outside. I'll still be able to hear you just fine."

"Are you sure?" Bella asked him, touching his forearm.

"Yeah," he smiled. "It's cool."

As he pushed the back door open to exit the car, Tanya slid into the front passenger seat, across from Bella.

"Couldn't you just have not breathed?" Bella asked her, annoyed. There really was no reason for Tanya to be rude. And frankly, she felt they all exaggerated the smell talk just to insult each other.

"Not if we're going to talk." Tanya said slowly, as if she were speaking to a dimwitted 4 year old.

Oh yeah.

Bella had informed Tanya in their phone conversation the day before, that should they meet at the Swan house, as planned, Charlie would be there as well. To keep things simple, it was decided they would meet just down the road from the house, parked in the Guardian. Bella had parked beneath a grove of pine tree just off the street, their limbs camouflaging the car. There were no homes here, and the secluded area would guarantee them privacy.

"So," Tanya breathed, not wasting any time and getting right down to business. "What is it that you ultimately want from all this?" She turned in her seat, so she could look straight into Bella's eyes. "Are you really that in love with your wolfman? Or was Edward right, and you really just wanted to try it doggy-style?"

Bella saw Seth's hand fly up to cover his mouth, and heard him snicker from the front of the car.

"I really love Jacob." She whispered sincerely.

"And what about all this?" Tanya gestured around at the interior of the car. "This car, your ring, all the Cullen money – you would give all this up to - what? Continue to live here in Forks or on the reservation."

"Yes."

"Wow." Tanya seemed genuinely impressed. "Edward said the money didn't impress you. I have to admit, I didn't believe him. Are you sure you don't want some kind of settlement in a divorce? A little compensation for your time and emotional distress?"

"No, nothing," Bella assured her.

"Nothing for the danger your life was put in? The stress of keeping the secret from everyone around you?"

Bella shook her head. "The only thing I want – "

"Ah, here it comes," Tanya crossed her arms smugly.

"All I want," Bella continued, giving Tanya a dirty look. "Is the reassurance that the Volturi will not come looking for me sometime down the line. I don't think anyone can give me that, though."

"The Volturi? How did you get the Volturi pissed at you?"

So Edward hadn't told her.

"A few months ago, Edward had a uh, a run-in with the Volturi, in Italy."

Bella was not about to tell Tanya that Edward had gone there to ask the Volturi to kill him. If Tanya didn't know this already, Edward obviously did not feel the need to tell her himself. Besides, saying it out loud – 'well, I jumped off a cliff, and Edward, thinking I was dead wanted to off himself' – sounded a little melodramatic even to her ears.

"To make a long story short, the Volturi were promised that I was going to become one of you, and because of that, they let me live. I'm just afraid that eventually they're going to come checking that I've been changed, and when they see I haven't…"

"Ohh. I wouldn't worry about that." Tanya told her dismissively.

"Well, I'm sorry, but I _am_ worried about it."

"Honey, the Volturi are so old, it takes them half a century to remember each others' names. Short of you going to Volterra and checking in with them yourself – and you'd have to remind them who you are, first – I wouldn't worry about the Volturi hunting you down. If it'll make you feel any better, if the Volturi ask around, we'll all vouch that you're pale, dead and lifeless. Trust, they aren't going to leave Italy over one measly human. Okay?"

"Um, if you say so."

"Well, this is going to be easy, then."

"So am I wrong in assuming that you want to be with Edward?" Bella asked her.

Tanya sat back in her seat with a big sigh. "I do," she said, not so convincingly. "Though I don't know why. Edward used to be so much fun. When did he get so morose and intense? I mean, he's seriously been acting his age, lately."

Bella didn't know what to say to that. Edward had always been… intense.

"Well, the good news is, we're both on the same page." Tanya said, turning back to Bella. "This makes things so much easier. If all you want is to end your marriage, why haven't you just told him?"

Bella's mouth opened and closed a few times, like a fish out of water. "I just – I don't – I mean… I don't want to hurt him." She finished lamely.

"And you thought running from your wedding reception with another man and sleeping with _him_ on your wedding night, wouldn't?"

Bella felt her cheeks redden. She technically hadn't slept with anyone on her wedding night, but felt that fact didn't really matter now.

"Well that's just it," Bella tried to explain. "I feel like I'm adding insult to injury. Rubbing salt in the wound. I've already hurt him so much."

"Rip the Band-Aid off in one sweep, honey. Get it over with. You're making this worse. Look," she added, when Bella said nothing. "What about children? Don't you want kids? All human women want babies."

"I… I don't know." Bella hadn't thought she'd wanted children. Till the vision on the mountain. And she'd swept that aside, willing to give it all up for Edward. But when she'd seen Claire on Emily's lap at the wedding as she'd walked down the aisle… "Yes," she nodded, sure now. "Yes, I do."

"Well, tell Edward that." Tanya leaned in closely, and Bella could feel the chill coming off her stone-hard skin. "He would give you anything you asked him for. Tell him it's about the kids. You've decided you want to stay human so you can have children."

Tanya studied Bella and shook her head. "Don't you know he would give you anything you wanted? You wouldn't believe the lengths he'd go to, to give you whatever you asked for." Tanya averted her golden eyes, as if she'd given away more than she'd meant to. "Tell him." She repeated, opening the passenger door. "You want an annulment and the dog's puppies. This is easy, Bella. One clean stroke – like a Band-Aid."

Bella watched her get out of the car, and then in a blur, Tanya disappeared.

**XXXXXX**


	14. Chapter 14

_A/N: First off, I want to give a shout-out to some of my fellow wolf-girls! These ladies are some truly talented authors, and if you're not familiar with their fics, you should hit their links and go check their stories out. They are all not only extremely talented, but I consider all three of them friends. _

_First, light4dawn who has saved my butt with this story a few too many times to mention. Her current fic is called Every Rose Has Its Thorn. _

_One of the first people I met on Twitter and TATS: exquisite_ugly and her fic, Picking Up the Pieces. _

_And finally, Miss astrid244 Her current WIP is a J/B/P triangle called Broken Black Heart._

**Last Chapter: Edward had the secks with Tanya, hoping it would make him better prepared to make love to Bella -without killing her, that is. Bella is not interested in sex with Edward, as she has met her match with Mr. Jacob Black. Which works well for Tanya, who asked for a secret meeting with Bella, to see what was holding her up in her request for an annulment from Edward. Tanya was more than happy to offer to take care of Edward while Bella went off to make puppies (eventually) with Jacob. So the ball is in Bella's court. All she has to do is ask for the annulment. That would make Jacob happy. Tanya also would be pleased, not to mention Bella as well. Everyone except for Edward. He kinda sorta wants his wife back. **

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Idiots!" Charlie yelled at the television screen. "Agh, we don't do it like that." He grumbled, shaking his head, annoyed.

"Why do you keep watching this show if it makes you so mad?" Bella finally asked him.

"There's nothing else on." He muttered. He continued to sigh and scoff throughout the whole show.

Bella stood up from the sofa and stretched, opening her mouth in a wide yawn.

"Ya going up?" Charlie asked, glancing over at her briefly, before staring back at the TV screen.

"Yeah, I'm exhausted." She shuffled for the stairs and headed for her room.

"Oh my god! He already fired six shots! Who the hell writes this stuff – trained monkeys?"

She chuckled as Charlie continued to rant at the TV screen. She turned the doorknob and stepped into her darkened room, reaching over and flipping on the light switch.

The scream bubbled up from her diaphragm and exited her throat in a screech at the sight of him sitting in the chair in the middle of her room.

"Are you alright?" She heard Charlie jump up from the couch and head for the stairs.

She wheezed a deep breath, her throat still tight from the scare he'd given her. "I'm fine," she yelled down the stairs. "I tripped. It's alright."

"Be careful." She heard him say as he flopped back down into the cushions of the sofa.

"Edward," she whispered, shutting her door. "What are you doing here? You scared the hell out of me. How did you get in? The window was shut."

"It was unlocked. I hope you don't mind. I just - I need to see you, Bella. I miss you. I've been waiting to hear some word from you. It's been days, and you haven't called, you haven't come by. I thought after you saw Carlisle, you might…" His voice trailed off. "How is your hand? Does it hurt?" He stood and crossed the room toward her, his hand outstretched, reaching for hers.

All she could think was that Jacob was going to be pissed.

"It's fine," she murmured.

His chilled fingers moved idly over her skin as he stared at her hand. "Bella… Love," he said tightly. "Why did you meet with Tanya behind my back?"

She reflexively pulled her hand back. "I just - I didn't," she began. "How did you find out?"

His mouth turned up into a sad crooked smile. He tapped the side of his head with his finger. "Mind-reader, remember?"

Bella had assumed that Tanya had had a plan to outwit Edward's mind-reading capabilities. Obviously, they fell through.

"I didn't mean to meet with her behind your back. She asked me to speak with her privately and I did. I mean, obviously I assumed you knew about it since you… read minds," she bluffed, lamely.

__.

"Did you mean what you said to her?" He whispered.

"Which part?" She whispered back.

"Please give me another chance, Bella." He avoided her question, instead raising his gaze and giving her a pleading look. "Please. I really think I can give you everything you need to be happy now."

His cool pale finger reached for her, tilting her head back, forcing her to meet his gaze. "Everything."

He bent down slowly and she allowed him to kiss her softly. She was surprised when he pulled her in tighter, her body closer than he had ever allowed before.

She pushed gently against his shoulders, pulling back. "Edward. No."

"Please, Bella." His chilled lips moved to her neck, planting soft kisses along her throat. Chills went down her spine as he gripped her arms tightly. Almost too tightly.

"Edward," she sighed. He continued down her neck to her collarbone and his cool mouth was making her shiver. She would have been lying if she'd said it wasn't pleasurable. Edward had always had an almost drug-like effect on her.

But she'd found a better drug. One with no undesirable side effects - like death.

"I can do this, Bella. I can give you what you want. I promised we would try, didn't I? We can finally be together," he murmured. She gasped as his lips dipped down her chest, just above her cleavage.

"Edward, no!"

She pulled back and he dropped his hands.

"What's wrong, love?"

"It's too late, Edward. It's too late, and I can't go back."

"I know I'm a fool, Bella." He took her face in his hands gently. "I know. I should have trusted when something is this right, it would have been okay. It was what you wanted and I should have respected that. I was just so afraid to hurt you, to harm you in some way."

"That's just it. For you, it was always something _**I**_ wanted. Something you were going to do _for_ me." She shook her head. "It was never what you wanted. It was never mutual. Making love isn't about doing someone a favor. It's about expressing physically how you feel about that person. Expressing your love."

"And Jacob… expresses that?"

"Edward," she shook her head free from his touch. She took a deep breath, looking into his amber eyes. "I want an annulment," she whispered.

The silence was so still you could have heard a pin drop. "Noo," he finally uttered softly. "You don't mean that."

"I do. I'm so sorry. I love you, Edward. I do, but sometimes that isn't enough. I just… I was losing myself. By the time I walked down that aisle, I realized I wanted to please you so badly, that I had lost every part of myself that made me, _me_. I was sacrificing everything and everyone that was important to me, sacrificing my beliefs. And I'm not blaming you for that. I just wanted to be like you, like your family. But Jacob was right. I was lazy. I didn't want to work at bettering myself, I just wanted an easy fix. I wanted instant beauty and eternal youth and – you. But the price, Edward. How could I spend eternity a shell of what I used to be?"

"No, I wouldn't want that. None of us would want that for you, love. But you were so sure." He stared at her hand in his for a long time. "What if I said you could have everything you wanted? We'll get the annulment, forget about marriage. Forget about forever for now. We'll go away to Dartmouth, or we can stay here and go to university, or we'll go to Alaska – whatever you decide. You can stay here and live with your father, or we can get our own place. We'll make love. I want to be with you, Bella. I do. Anything you want and I will make sure you have it. Could we start over and try it that way?"

She lowered her gaze to escape his earnest gaze. She shook her head slowly.

"You love him?"

"I do."

"It's not just the sex? Because I've been reading up and doing research on the emotional intimacy that women feel when they become sexually involved. It's powerful, powerful stuff. But it fades, Bella."

She continued to shake her head as he spoke. The fact he had been studying female sexuality in his free time made her want to laugh and cry at the same time.

"He could imprint, you know. What will you do then?"

"I'll deal with it, if and when it happens."

He dropped her hands and took a step back, defeated. "You're sure?"

"Yes."

He went to the window and sat against the ledge. "I'll contact the lawyers then. Carlisle said he told you we have people to take care of our legal affairs. Don't worry. I'll take care of everything. All you'll have to do is sign papers. I'm sorry I put you through all this, Isabella."

"Don't apologize." A sob finally cracked through her stoic demeanor. "Please don't apologize!"

"I'll contact you when the papers have been drawn up. We'll be leaving directly afterward."

He turned his body toward the night, ready to escape through the open window.

"Edward, wait! I never wanted it to end this way! Please promise me that you don't hate me! Please promise me that you'll never forget how much I love you!"

She flung herself at him and it was like hitting a solid wall. He stood and held her tight and kissed the top of her head. A surreal déjà-vu breezed over her as he whispered in her ear before he turned and exited through the window.

"Be happy."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXX**

When the papers arrived through the mail three weeks later, Bella signed them and returned them, along with her ring and the keys to the Guardian.

Three and a half weeks later, the Cullens left town. Charlie told her, as he'd heard from someone at work that Dr. Cullen and his family had packed up and moved to Alaska.

No one ever came to pick up the car. The Guardian remained on the street where Bella had parked it, so there would be easy access to it when someone came for it.

It's name was always a reminder of her almost-family and what Edward had hoped the over-protective car would be to her – what it represented.

A guardian to watch over her and protect her from the world. Edward's way of keeping her safe when he couldn't be there.

How ironic.

**XXXXXXXXXXXX**

_A/N: Sorry for the second author's note, but I just wanted to let you know there is one more chapter left. Thank you to those of you who hung in there with me till the end and reviewed every chapter. My appreciation knows no bounds! You know who you are. _


	15. Chapter 15

_A/N: I thought that since I started out this story with a wedding that it would only be fitting to end it with one, as well. The right one._

_This is the final chapter of Sweet Hostage. I apologize for the long wait between the last few chapters. This story was started on a whim in protest to the Breaking Dawn movie's premiere, and the subsequent ending of the saga that left most of us very dissatisfied. I had no idea where I was going with this story and wrote it flying by the seat of my pants the whole way through. For those of you who have followed it from the beginning (and you know who you are), I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your reviews and comments are what motivated me to finish. Thank you!_

**Chapter Fifteen**

_Elated._

She smiled. That was a good one.

_Excited. Happy._

She was taking stock of her emotions.

_Exhilarated._

She laughed out loud.

These were all a far cry from the feelings running through her body at the first wedding.

She looked over in surprise at Charlie, who laughed along with her slipped giggle. She snorted.

"What?" he asked her.

"You don't even know what you're laughing at. You're more excited than I am," Bella told her father.

"No, I'm not." He scowled at her. That just made her laugh harder.

"What's everyone laughing at?" Billy asked them, wheeling over.

"I don't know. Does there have to be a reason?" Charlie asked him.

"We're just happy." Bella explained.

"Oh. Well, good. I just left Jacob, and he looked like he didn't know whether to laugh or cry."

Bella and Charlie looked at him, concerned.

"Happy tears," Billy explained.

"Oh," they both said at the same time.

Angela, Kim and Emily came down the makeshift aisle of white, purple and pink rose petals tossed onto the sand. Bella looked anxiously up at the sky. They'd better make this quick, no knowing how long the flowers would stay in place before the wind kicked up and blew them away. They'd been lucky so far, it was a warm, mild day.

"You ready?" Angela leaned in and whispered in Bella's ear as she went by her. "We're about to start."

Bella saw a figure come around from behind a rock just a short distance down the beach. There was no mistaking who that tall, handsome man in a dark suit and jacket was. He wore his silky shoulder length hair down; because that was the way she liked it.

She felt her heart skip a beat, and the happy butterflies fluttered in her stomach. She watched Jacob make his way to the back of the folding chairs, where the small audience of guests were seated. He flashed her _his_ smile, the one that was just for her, and the sun seemed to brighten in the sky.

Embry, Quil and Seth stood behind him, waiting for the three girls lined up behind Bella, to escort them to the small white altar set up at the end of the flower-strewn aisle.

"Ready?"

Bella looked up at her father. "Yes, I am," she told him in a strong, steady voice.

Billy had wheeled himself over the sand and waited underneath the white arched columns where Bella and Jacob would say their vows. It was set up just alongside their old driftwood log. Billy had gotten a certificate online that would allow him to officiate the wedding and marry the two of them. Bella couldn't help but be proud, not many people were married by a real, live Quileute Indian Chief. Although, she had a feeling that Charlie was a little jealous about it. But he had his own role to play as father of the bride, and that was important too.

Bella and Charlie began the walk down the beach, toward the guests, toward her husband-to-be. When they reached him, Jacob leaned into her father and whispered in his ear while shaking his hand, and taking his daughter from him. "Thank you, Charlie. You know I'll take good care of her."

"Oh, I know you will, son. We both know who owns the biggest gun in this town," Charlie semi-joked.

Bella giggled and took Jacob's arm. His dark suit set off his black eyes and the white shirt made a beautiful contrast against his coppery complexion.

"Wow," Bella breathed. "Did anyone ever tell you you're sort of beautiful?"

"Why, yes! But," he grinned. "They had hit their head really hard. I'm not sure if they were actually lucid."

"Hmm, that doesn't count then," she teased him.

"Oh." Jacob feigned disappointment. "Then, no. No one has ever told me that."

"Well, as a woman of sound mind and body – who _hasn't_ hit her head in at least a week – let me tell you, you are quite a sight, Mr. Black! I'd even say plain, old beautiful. No sort-of about it."

"Well, doesn't that make you the lucky one?" He joked.

"I think so, yes."

"Nah," he leaned in, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "I'm the lucky one."

"Ahem." Someone in the back row cleared his throat loudly. Paul gave them a look. "Come on Black, you can play kissy-giggle with her later. Let's get this show on the road."

Rachel elbowed Paul, as Bella and Jacob slowly walked across the multi-colored carpet of rose petals, toward the white arch where Billy waited for them. A large circle was outlined in the sand for the two of them to stand in, symbolizing the never-ending circle of life.

Bella had never been affiliated with a church growing up, so she and Jake had decided to choreograph their own ceremony, incorporating a few Indian wedding prayers and traditions in it.

A musky-scented smoke filled the air from a lit bundle of sage - a blessing of purification.

Billy beamed at the two of them before addressing the guests.

"This wedding ceremony is taking place outdoors. With Father Sky as the roof of the most sacred cathedral, and Mother Earth at our feet to hold you and keep you grounded." Billy's deep voice began the ceremony. He was used to capturing an audience – all the years of telling legends that were more than mere stories, around a blazing bonfire. He had a way of making everyone take note of the words he said, and latching onto the message behind them.

"But that's not why this beach in La Push was chosen today. First Beach is where these two not only spent a lot of their time throughout their relationship, but also where they met many years ago, though I doubt either one of them remembers that first time. Let me just tell you, they were not very impressed with each other back then. I won't embarrass either of them and tell you about the bucket of wet sand my son got dumped on his three-year-old head, after falling on - and ruining - the sand castle that Bella and his sisters had painstakingly built."

"You just did, Dad."

"Well, watch your step today, son. If she pours a bucket of sand on your head or makes you cry again, I'm sure you'll have deserved it."

Billy coughed as Jacob gave him a half-hearted dirty look, and then went on.

"We are joyfully assembled here today to witness and celebrate the joining of two lives in marriage: Jacob Ephraim Black and Isabella Marie Swan."

The rest of the ceremony went by in a blur, and Bella was thankful that Jared had agreed to tape it all. The next thing she knew Billy was introducing Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Black to the friends and family gathered. The first person Bella saw when she turned around was Charlie, bouncing out of his seat and applauding. Renee was seated beside him, dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief. Bella hoped they were tears of happiness for Jake and her, and not tears of sadness, as Renee was here alone. She and Phil had separated last year, and the divorce became final just last month.

Bella was proud of her when she wiped her eyes and dutifully jumped up to take some pictures with her and Jacob, Charlie and Billy before they all headed up to the Black's house for some food.

They were blessed to have a handful of amazing cooks on their guest list. Sue and Emily had volunteered to be in charge of feeding the masses. Not to mention they were the only two accustomed to accommodating the amounts of food it took to fill the stomachs of a pack of wolves. That, as Bella knew, was no small feat.

There was fried chicken that had been prepared earlier that day and the smell of bbq tri-tip roasts greeted them as they came down the driveway. There were four tables already laid out and filled with multiple versions of green salads and potato salads, roasted potatoes, pasta, hot ears of corn, green beans, hot dinner rolls, on and on, every kind of food imaginable. It must have taken them days to prepare it all.

Paul had offered to tend bar, while someone else had set up speakers on the porch and had music going. There were flowers wound up around the ramp and the stair banisters leading to the house, while streamers hung across the whole front of the house.

"Not quite as elaborate as you've had before, but pretty nice, right?" Jacob asked her earnestly. Bella knew he always wished he could give her all the material things the Cullens had been able to afford. No matter how much she reassured him that those things had never meant anything to her, she knew he still wished he could afford to lavish her with as much as they had.

"It's perfect."

She had warned Jacob beforehand that she did not want to do a traditional first dance in front of everyone. It was bad enough being on display while they said their vows. But she _did_ dance. Albeit only slow dances, where all she had to do was hold onto Jacob and sway back and forth to the rhythm he kept. It got easier as the day wore on, and after three glasses of champagne, it was actually enjoyable!

The drinking, dancing and food held out all through the afternoon and early evening. But once night fell, the wind kicked up and the fog began to roll in. People started leaving, and the few stragglers took the party inside the Black's house.

The only people still outside were Jacob, Bella and Jared with Kim. Bella watched the two of them as they stared into each other's eyes and swayed back and forth, even though the music had shut down hours ago.

As if reading her thoughts, Jacob pulled her close. He knelt down, making direct eye contact to get his point across. "The Universe didn't have to lobotomize me to fall for the right girl."

"Are you saying you were stupid enough all on your own?"

He grinned. "Yep."

It was something Bella hardly thought about anymore, but every great once in a while, it would sneak up on her, making her anxious. _What if…?_ Then she'd pull herself together and assure herself if it hadn't happened yet, it wasn't going to happen. After all, Embry, Seth and Leah never imprinted. Just that brief window of time all those years ago when Sam, Jared, Paul and Quil had been struck like lightening with their imprints. Then nothing. Like a plague that comes in and grabs as many victims as it can before disappearing, leaving the rest of the ones untouched forever looking over their shoulders.

"Bells, I'm twenty-four. No one has imprinted in eight years. Don't even think about it." He kissed her as incentive to forget.

"Jacob?" She asked him, coming up for air. "If I ask you to do something for me, would you do it?"

"Aw Bells, of course I will." He hated to see her worried. "What did you have in mind, Mrs. Black?" He smiled, trying to lighten the mood slightly.

She looked up at him with her big chocolate-brown eyes. "Get me the hell out of here."

He threw his head back and laughed as she broke into a huge grin.

"Not again!" He pulled her closer. "Any second requests?"

"Yeah," she giggled. "Remember that second thing I asked you for last time?"

"No questions asked?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Don't tell me you've got condoms in those shoes."

"No." She shook her head. "No condoms. We're married now. I think we should live dangerously."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get out of here." He took her hand and they ran up the porch together, giggling. They hurriedly went inside and said goodbye and thank-you to their guests. There were presents lined up against the living room wall; they would come back sometime tomorrow and open them.

They had finally saved up enough money to put a down payment on a house. It was on the coast of Sekiu, about half an hour drive from Forks. Far enough away to leave the past and all bad memories behind yet close enough to remind them where it all started and what was important.

They had hoped to be able to spend their wedding night in their new house, but they couldn't move in till the next month, which was only four days away. They had been staying with Billy the last two weeks, but had rented a hotel room for the remainder of their wait. The down payment had used up any vestige of honeymoon money, but they didn't really care. A honeymoon was about them being together, it didn't matter where they were.

Seth told them that Harry had left his family some land in Mount Rainier, and there was a small shack there in the mountains beside a lake that they could use any time they wanted. But there was too much to do with the new move, so they would take Seth up on his offer after they were settled into their new home.

Jacob threw a couple of suitcases into the trunk of his newest fixer-upper: a 69 Mustang Mach 1. The Rabbit was now retired and covered like a corpse on a stretcher on its way to the morgue, in the garage.

Jake hopped into the driver's seat, and Bella saw a nostalgic look pass over his features. "Remember when we snuck into a room at the Seattle Hilton? Man, we were ballsy."

"We were desperate!" she snorted. "No ID's, no money… and me, afraid to go home," she added softly.

"You weren't afraid." He took her hand. "You just wanted to seduce me before you went back and faced the music."

"Yeah," she admitted, guiltlessly. "That too."

"What a crazy time," he murmured. "But I'll never forget it."

"Me either. But Jacob?"

"Hmm?"

"Please don't break in anywhere tonight. We have reservations."

"I don't know," he told her pulling up the driveway, before rolling onto the road. "Maybe you'll see some cute stuff hanging on a clothesline along the way. We could pull a 'tug-and-run'. A new sweater for me, maybe a cute little dress for you. Or no, a nice men's shirt for you. A button-up, collared men's shirt, I don't care what color… although I do like you in blue. Blue looks nice on you. Yep, definitely a guy's dress shirt for you, and nothing else."

He reached over and put his warm hand on her thigh.

She giggled. It was amazing the clarity that came with age. At eighteen, she'd thought she knew everything. Luckily, she'd realized her mistakes and averted the consequences before it was too late. She was wise enough to know, that at twenty-six, she _still_ didn't know anything, but it was a pretty safe bet, that if she had Jacob Black by her side, they could figure the important things out, together.

Not that they wouldn't make mistakes or wish they could have done things differently sometimes, but alive and together, there would be no regrets.

And who could ask for more than that?

~~``Sweet Hostage``~~

_A/N: Yes, another author's note! Did any of you notice the reference to Intoxicating with the mention of the shack in the mountains? I just wanted to make sure you were paying attention. Hehe Thank you all again for reading my story. _


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